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Summer B - Not my idea of a Caribbean Cruise! (BF 33%)Story: Following the clues up the river to the Burned City and dealing with an undisclosed BOSS at the endDiet - stick to <= 1550 net calories (adjust for exercise) and protein >= 66 grams 76 grams Do a chin up or pullup with <= 30 pounds of assistanceDeadlift 80 pounds Walk/run 10K Decipher the clues (i.e. plan the move)Or ..... this could be named the ........ Summer Challenge. My epic quest is to rediscover myself as the Mal Ravenne. It involves a LOT of attributes that are not measurable and really come down to those golden moments when you stop and realize that you're living an authentic life and are achieving your goals. Not all of my goals are fitness goals, thank the gods. Many are listed in the second post of this thread. My main quest (this year) is to get down to a normal BF% of < 32%. That's only 1.5% from where I am today. I can make this by the end of the year if I commit to my workouts and COOKING healthy food. That's about 12 pounds of weight loss, assuming I can maintain lean body mass where it is now. Subgoals (challenge starting June 28th) My goals this time are a mix of process goals and objective end-point goals. Process goals are not as strongly motivating for me as end goals 1 - keep calories down and make sure protein stays above 66 g per day. I'm using SparkPeople to track because I like their interface and recipe database (+5 CON) 2 - pullup or chinup using less than 30 pounds of assistance. I'm currently at 50 pounds of assistance; so this should be feasible .... and maybe I can surpass it by dropping the assistance 5 pounds each week. (+3 STR) 3 - deadlift 1/2 my bodyweight, which I hope will be 160 by the end of the challenge ..... hence, 80 pounds. I'm currently at 35 pounds, and it feels easy. (+2 STR) 4 - walk/run 10K. For no particular reason. I like cardio, and I love running along the Lakewalk in Duluth. I can easily do 3.5 miles now with a mix of running and walking. (+5 STA) 5 - Life quest: get moved ..... or at least get further along the process. Grading: 1 - Count the success days vs. goal days and grading will be by a percentage 2 - A = 30 pounds B = 35 pounds C = 40 pounds D = 45 pounds F >= 50 pounds 3 - A = 80 pounds B = 75 pounds C = 70 pounds D = 65 pounds F <= 60 pounds 4 - A = 6 miles on my long run of the week B = 5.5 miles C = 5 miles D = 4.5 miles F <= 3 miles 5 - LIfe goal is pass/fail and does not carry points. It is very unlikely that I'll actually move during this challenge, but I'd like to have the purchase offer in on a house that passes inspection this time!!! I am hoping to spend August packing and continuing to clean out stuff we don't need. Given the types of goals, I'm hanging with the Rangers this time and hope to complete the mini-challenges. My tracking spreadsheet is ready and waiting the starting gun!! And YES, I am doing more strength training than is represented in my goals - both free-weights (or dumb bells or kettlebells) and bodyweight training. I'll continue to work on refining a new class chooser program and maybe do one for races as well. If anyone has a fun PvP or accountability group that has room, let me know!!

I had been thinking about this challenge since week 3 of my last challenge. That was all before the news of the new Thor was announced. Now this challenge seems extremely apropos. BOOM! Let's get straight to the kicking of the ass, shall we? MAIN GOAL: REACHING ASGARD (PULL-UP!) I want to do a pull-up. It may not (will not) happen this challenge, but I really want to do one... at least one! FITNESS GOAL: LIFTING THOR'S HAMMER (pull-up progression) I'm following the NF Guide to Pull-Up Progression By the end of the last challenge I had started doing dumbell rows with my 25# kettle bell.... so I suppose they are kettle bell rows. I want to keep track of the progression of this exercise specifically. If I can consistently do 10 reps with the 25# I will move up to a heavier weight. I'm keeping it simple and focusing on this exercise specifically as well as more back exercises. I will allow myself to miss complete workouts, but I won't allow myself to not do 3 sets of KB rows. I'll also be tracking progress on assisted pull-ups. Currently I am using a chair and doing pull-ups with one leg on the chair. I also have resistance bands that will find their way into this progression sooooooon. DIET GOAL: PREPARING THE SHWARMA (batch cooking) If you have followed my journey you know that this is SUPER important to my goals and my overall sanity. I need to take time out of my schedule on weekends to prep food for the week. Then I can just grab things during the week, heat, and nomf. More time to wield my hammer and lay waste to ice giants. LIFE GOAL: BRING THE THUNDER (create, create, create) OK. Thor isn't the most artsy superhero so I wasn't quite sure what to title this one, so forgive me. I've been on a good tear of doing art things and being happy with just creating and making and putting awesome things into the world. So I will continue with this! I also am setting myself a challenging goal of creating a Thor costume/cosplay for Halloween. EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! I've never done any wearable art before so this will be a learning experience and super fun. I'll be doing something like that and I will post any progress photos made through the challenge. Speaking of progress I should really put some progress shots here, along with some beginning stats. I've been having trouble seeing any real change/progress lately and it has been making me rather gloomed, so I'll definitely keep a before and after for this challenge. Ooo and make a chart for the pull-up progress because charts are important.

The Story So Far: It was bright and sunny the day the Assassin came to town. I was standing at my new, high-tech standing desk, which was absolutely not just my regular desk with an old toy chest on top of it, when I heard a knock at the door. I went over an opened it, and an Elf stood there. I looked him up and down; I'd never seen an elf before. He towered over me, six feet tall if he was an inch, all covered in lean muscle. He wore leather armor, carried a long bow slung across his back, and had strange things on his feet that I'd never seen before. He would later tell me these were called "shoes", and protected his feet from hard surfaces. If only I'd had some of those last challenge! I realised I'd just been staring for a good five seconds, and extended my hand as I spoke. "Hi. I'm Salivanth. You must be the one Hazard told me about." "That's right." he replied. "Where's the shrine?" "You don't want a drink or something?" I asked. "No thank you." he said. "I'd rather just get to the shrine. Besides, I've brought my own. It's only a few kilometers, correct?" I confirmed this, so we left my hut, stopping only so I could grab a torch. As we did I noticed a horse standing there, tied to my fence post, with saddlebags attached. I concluded he must have provisions in there. Without further ado, we began our walk. I'm sure the Assassin must have been impatient with my glacially slow pace, but to his credit, he hid it well. I tried to pick up the pace somewhat, but lacking these foot-coverings, there was only so fast I could move. On the way, we made small talk. He didn't give particularly detailed answers, but I did find out the elves lived in a forest a couple of days northwest of Rushforth, and a bit about these "shoes" he was wearing. We reached the cave, and I gave him the directions, just in case something happened. Swiftly we made our way to the shrine and approached it. Absolutely nothing happened. "So how do we open it?" the Assassin asked. "It...should just be opening by itself. It did when I approached it." I said. "Alright." he said. "I'll head back up a little bit, see if it opens then. If it does, shout out." He headed up the corridor, and was swiftly out of sight. After a few seconds more, the door opened. "It's open!" I called out, voice echoing off the narrow walls. As soon as the Assassin walked back into sight, the doors closed again. "Alright." the Assassin said. He stroked his chin. "Either it's only opening for you, or more likely, it only opens for one person. Head back two caverns, and I'll come back and let you know what happens." I walked back to the cavern that was two caverns away from the shrine, and waited. After a minute, the Assassin walked up. "No luck." he said. "Do you have a Warrior's guild in the village?" "No, sir, I'm afraid not. We don't have any guilds in Rushforth; not many hobbits join up." I said. He raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Very well. I'll have to check my briefing materials and go check with the nearest one." We left the cave in silence, and then the Assassin spoke again. "I'll be back in a day or two with the equipment we need. I'll require your help, so be ready. Goodbye." The Assassin broke into a jog. It looked like he could do it all day, but it was still much faster than I would be able to muster. I settled for walking at my usual pace. When I returned to my house, the Assassin and his horse were gone.

The Fool is the first card in the Tarot deck. It symbolizes new beginnings and adventures. There are unlimited possibilities out there and I'm going to seek them out. A bit of background on me, this is not the first time I've tried to complete a challenge. It's probably the fourth. I do really well for about a week, then disappear into the void that is the internet. That's probably because I was making myself accountable to people I didn't actually know. This time, however, I've gone and made a promise/bet with a very good friend, and I don't feel like losing. Main Quest: COSPLAY! That friend of mine is spending a year in Japan (lucky sod). When she comes back, we're cosplaying characters from Fire Emblem: Awakening. She's going to be Lucina and I, ambitious Fool that I am, am crossplaying as Chrom. I am really hoping to fool people into thinking that I am merely cosplaying as Chrom, but there's (at least) one significant problem: Chrom is significantly leaner than I am now. I'd be better off crossplaying as Stay Puft, but he doesn't exactly make a cameo in FE:A. This means I have little over a year (she hasn't left yet) to go from flab to fit and I'm going to love every minute of it (except the parts where I'm sure I'm going to die and why did I think this was a good idea?). I have to get used to moving and using parts of my body that normally just sit there, wondering what the meaning to life is. Quest One - Upper Body Goal: 1 standard pushup and 1 standard pullup Start: 2x5 knee pushups/assisted pullups/10lb shoulder press Quest Two - Lower Body Goal: 2x20 assisted squats/static lunges Start: 2x5 assisted squats/static lunges, ankle exercises at work Quest Three - Diet Goal: Back to Paleo Start: Eat breakfast!! Life Quest - Environment Goal: Make my bed daily and unfuck my mornings I follow a blog called Unfuck Your Habitat, and it's... incredibly inspiring. Almost overwhelming. But it's got some amazing techniques that seem to work really well. Plus more tidy space means more room to work out, right?

Okay, so every time I try doing pull ups, chin ups, curls, and even cable rowing, my inner forearm tendonitis comes back with a vengeance. I can't get more than a few reps in before it gets pretty bad. I tried taking a month off pulling and curling motions, and the only benefit is that the pain isn't present all the time any more. I really, really want to do my chinups. I don't care so much about curls (never have) or cable rowing (because it's lame). Barbell rows don't seem to bother me so much, but it might be the change in body mechanics putting stress on my joints differently. But as far as pull ups and stuff, it doesn't matter what grip I use. I'm strong enough now that I can do wide grip, neutral, supinated, whatever. I can fight through the pain and grind the reps out, but that's just idiocy. I've tried looking up some remedies for this and the best advice I've found thus far is stretching and rest. What I can't figure out is that it seems no matter how long I take off from doing these moves, it always comes right back. I've been dealing with this since January. I'll stop for about a month, try them, it comes right back, stop for about a month, etc. I will not be seeing a doctor unless the pain becomes an issue in other lifts or becomes constant and starts interfering with my life or my job. As it stands it's only ever been an issue during pullups, rowing, or curls. For a brief period several months ago I did try to fight through it and went on doing chin ups every day, and the pain became a constant burn all the time. I only did that for about two weeks and threw in the towel. Here we are three or four months later and the problem seems to have never resolved. Please help if you can. I miss chin ups.

Lilith Level 2 Kitten (definitely not yet a Cat, or Tiger, or...) Main quest: Kitteh wants to climb higher and higher! Lilith, the chubby little kitten puts her claws into a new adventure, quite literally! She, and her brother and sister kittens are growing fast! So fast mommy cat can't always keep up with all their little tricks and adventures. Lilith is especially great at happily pouncing out of sight - just a little longer each and every time. Her slightly bigger brother, Ravi, challenges Lilith ever so often. They are the two oldest, boldest, most adventurous of the bunch and there's a constant struggle to be better! Lilith hisses at Ravi, as he's prowling after her. "Leave me alone! I have lots of stuff to do - ALONE!" and off she was. She had discovered a love for climbing things, as she's not quite the jumper yet. Whenever she was on a new high object, higher than the last, she felt like a fierce Tiger, or no, Lion! RAAAAAAAWRRRRR. There it was, a new obstacle! .... THE FLUFFY PILLOW! Lilith squints her eyes in concentration, and... Meow. *sadface* Didn't go quite as expected. Ravi, of course, parades just a bit higher than her, on a big soft chair. Grrrrrrr. (Lilith is getting quite the growling practice!) She has a plan, though. What if she got so good at climbing she could feed herself... Instead of waiting to be fed.... She would be the litter's heroine! I have to keep on trying, Lilith thought. Practice makes purrrrfect! In order to help my alter ego Lilith, I will have to work on my climbing skills, and get better! In order to do that I have three goals. Goal 1: Workout - Kitteh loves being busy! Workout 5 times a week, of which one should be actual climbing (bouldering or toprope). Workout can be anything: strenght training, Insanity, ZWOWs, other bodyweight circuits, HIIT, running, pilates. Mostly it will be bodyweight training, or with some of the makeshift weights I have, because I only workout at home. Why not climb more often than once a week? Simple, I simply don't have the money to do that. This is already stretching my budget (usually I go every other week). Goal 2: Climbing Skill Practice - Little kittens want to grow skills! Work on various skills that help with climbing - 4 times a week. This can be: - Working on grip strength - Working on pullups - Working on mobility - Working on flexibility/yoga - Working on balance (slackline, indoboard, anything) - Working on pistol squats Goal 3: Walking - Wanderlust, and adventure seeking! Walk as much as possible! This will help with the epic quest, which is stated further down below. I challenge myself to walk at least 100km during the challenge. I will track this with gps and I will not map my 'normal' walking throughout the day, only hikes in the forest or otherwise purposefully going on a walk. If I happen to exceed my expectations I will just add another 100km bar! Lets see how many I get to fill up 100%100% 3.3%3.3% Week 1 Workouts 5/5 Skill practice 4/4 Week 2 Workouts 5/5 Skill practice 4/4 Week 3 Workouts 4/5 Skill practice 4/4 Week 4 Workouts 4/5 Skill practice 4/4 Week 5 Workouts 5/5 Skill practice 5/4 Week 6 Workouts 5/5 Skill practice 4/4 Grading All three goals count equally. Goal 1: No workout missed is A, for every 2 workouts missed I lose 1 grade. Goal 2: No skill practice missed is A, for every 1 skill practice missed I lose 1 grade. Goal 3: Complete the 100km = A, every 10km less I lose 1 grade. Epic quest: From 73kg to 54kg This is definitely the ultimate motive behind all these challenges. However, I choose not to focus on weightloss or food right now. I'm recovering from binge eating disorder, and tracking those on the challenges, I noticed last time, was very triggering for me. I would rather challenge myself on what my body can DO rather than how it looks. I'm not going to post weigh-ins, but in my signature you can follow my journey to a healthy weight. Looking forward to smashing this challenge with all of you! Lilith's Catty Story part 1: http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/39452-lilith-a-chubby-kitten-looking-to-lose-weight/ (conclusion of the story at the end with the challenge summary)

Okay, so two days ago in the gym I was "max-testing" my pullups again. I've been training neutral grip more than pronated grip, using a mix of assisted pullup machines, negatives, and bands (at home). 12kg resistance is the lowest the machine at the gym goes, so I've been adding extra weight to the knee pad to get to lower... and with 9kg extra weight it felt easy (neutral grip). Same with 11kg. Then 12kg. Hmmm. Then 14kg. HMMMM. So I thought I'd done the arithmetic wrong, did my warmdown, and left. Go home. Still can't do pronated grip pullups, it's like there's a barrier just before my arms get to 90 degrees. Then today I thought I'd just try neutral grip without the resistance.... AND I DID IT! And then I did another one! And then I did three more sets of two! Came home, looked at the pullup bar, AND BANGED OUT MY FIRST PROPER PULLUP. BEST MONDAY EVER. I'm so happy I could... I don't know, DO MORE PULLUPS.

That's right, I'm going BACK IN TIME. Epic Quest: Reduce my body fat to 24% Motivation: Increase my athleticism to improve my chances of surviving the Zombie Apocalypse or other End-of-World Scenario To make it back alive, I need to: 1. Outrun A Dinosaur I'm afraid of running. Rock climbing? No. Hiking in all sorts of terrain? No. Flying trapeze? No. Running? Yes. I'm afraid of feeling like I can't catch my breath; I'm afraid of injuring myself; I'm afraid of looking like a complete idiot. But I'm trying to do things I'm afraid of these days. So I signed up for a 10K in January. And training starts now. Goal: Complete 2 sessions of Zombies, Run! 5K Training each week, while maintaining some combination of Rebel Training, Pilates, and yoga for a total of 4 planned days of activity per week. [sTA 3 / STR 1] 2. Eat Like A Cavewoman Thoroughly inspired by KingLeeroy and Tateman, I'm going to complete the Whole 30 this challenge. (Which, for the unfamiliar, is like PALEO X-TREME! for 30 consecutive days.) My intention is to discover my (suspected) food sensitivities, which I'll systematically test for in the last week of the challenge. Goal: Complete the Whole 30 Friday, September 20th–Sunday, October 20th, plus 7 days of testing for food sensitivities. [CON 4 / CHA 1] 3. Outclimb A Velociraptor Okay, in a true contest of me vs. a Raptor, my money is on the lizard. But! Being able to do a pull-up (my goal for three challenges now) can't hurt. Goal: Work toward 1 unassisted pull-up on the bar 5 days a week, at least 2 days of negative pull-ups. [sTR 3 / STA 1] 4. Unwind, Cavewoman Style I love doing stuff. I love being distracted. But lately I've felt like I am hitting the reset button, and it's not working. Goal: Completely unplug and be still at home 1 waking hour per week. (Reading, knitting, etc. are okay. No computer, iPhone, or TV.) [WIS 2] Grading System Since I've fashioned each of these goals to be "Yup, I did it" or "Nope. Fail," I'm going to grade on rate of success. So: A 90% Success Overall in Challenge B 80% C 70% D 50% F Under 50% Fitness Philosophy: Why I'm A Ranger (originally posted here) Other than my fat-loss goal listed above, but as implied by my motivation, my ultimate goal is to be fit. Meaning I am strong, I run swiftly, I am flexible, I eat healthfully, and my body fat percentage is in a low, healthy range. I approach fitness from a survivalist perspective (though, I'm pretty moderate about it). I want to be able to manage whatever situation I find myself in. Climb that tree to escape the Wargs? No problem. Run through the tangled jungle with the stolen idol to escape angry natives? You've got it. Hand-to-hand combat on a crane suspended over a city? Done. And as a card-carrying member of the Fellowship of the Bat, I will one day be able to roll out of bed, fall straight forward, and start my pushups, Dark Knight style.

The title kind of says it all - is there any reason to do both? Right now I've got both in my routine but I was thinking of just dropping the inverted rows out so that I can focus on pullups and chinups. Thoughts?

I've always been "slim" and fairly active (cardio), but until recently I was getting squishier by the day. I gave up wheat around Christmas of last year, which lead to a pretty substantial weight drop, but the squishiness was still there. I decided enough was enough, and started Crossfit about 3 months ago. Since then I've gotten a lot stronger and lost a few inches, but I want more. Ultimately, I want to be stronger (able to lift body weight+ in big 3 lifts), faster (able to run sub 30 min 5k), and leaner (<20% body fat) before my 40th birthday in December. In addition, I’m getting married in October, and want to have beautifully sculpted arms, shoulders, and back. These goals are specifically aimed at improving the look of my arms while adding functional strength and working towards my ultimate goals. Current Stats: Age: 39 Height: 5’2†Weight: 129lb, ~25% BF Crossfit 5X per week 1. Stronger – Strength 3 + Stamina 2 Currently I can only do 2 strict pushups, no pull-ups, and I can hold a 30 second handstand against a wall. By end of challenge I will be able to link 10 at least pushups, at least 2 strict pull-ups (or 5 kipping), and hold a freestanding handstand for 30 seconds. I will work on each daily and weekly grading will be based on the number of days worked. GRADES: A - worked on each at least 5 times per week, B – 4 days, C – 3 days, Fail - less than 3 days. Overall grade will take into account whether I pass or fail at this goal. 2. Mobile – Dexterity 4 + Stamina 1 Since I started Crossfit 3 months ago, I’ve stopped my yoga practice. As a result, I think I’ve lost some of my flexibility. To combat this, I’ll add 20 minutes of yoga and/or mobility work twice per week to my schedule. Grades: A – twice per week C – once per week 3. Leaner - Constitution 3 + Wisdom 2 I currently eat “mostly paleo†which is perhaps more like “sorta paleoâ€. For this challenge I’ll clean it up to 80% paleo. Grades: A - Fully paleo 5 days of the week. B - 4 days, C - 3 days, Fail - less than 3 days Life Quest - DO more Until very recently I did not own a television. Now I seem to watch hours of TV per day. I will restrict my watching to not more than 1 hour per day. During my reclaimed free time, I'll read, play with my dogs/family, or complete various projects around the house. Motivation Aside from the aforementioned wedding in October. 1. I want to like what I see in the mirror. It's not bad, but it could be better 2. I want to be a good example to my family. Eating better, exercising, and watching less TV will help motivate both my fiancé and soon to be step daughter to do the same.

Hey guys, So after a little weird viral arthritic sickness I'm back into circuit training, and loving being back into it. Getting my energy levels back up, feeling stronger after every time. What I'm after here I guess is a little preemptive advice, as I can feel myself finding some of my routine very easy, and others a little too hard. Firstly, my circuit as it stand is this: Decline push ups x15 Hanging knee raises x10 Dumbell Squats x10 Chin ups x as many as I can do up to 10 Body Lever 1min repeat 4 times. It is intense, but firstly, I'm getting to the stage where the push ups are not really challenging enough. Not quite there yet, but I'd rather have something set in stone to change it up with before my triceps and chest get too bored. So should I be looking at wider/narrower hand positions, one armers, higher decline? Is there a general progression to follow? I definitely dont feel ready for one arm yet, I guess that's the end stage of push ups. Other than that, I've just in the last month added chin ups to my circuit after buying a cheap portable doorway bar. My goal at the moment is to hit 10 chin ups or pull ups in a rep. I can barely hit 5 of either, obviously tapering off after every set. Am I being too impatient here? Someone tell me I am and I'll gladly shut up. It just seems like a wall I cant get over yet, and it's a little frustrating. I'm pretty sure my form's ok, I dont swing around at all, and I'm more or less starting from a dead hang, so maybe I'm just being too hard on myself. However if anyone does have suggestions please hit me up. Thanks!

'sup Assassins? Sea Level here for round ... what? Wow, I look at the date, and by the time this challenge is over, I will have been a member of the rebellion for nearly one year. Shazam! The rebellion has done wonders, and I need to bounce back after my poor showing last challenge. To wit, I offer for your viewing pleasure Challenge, Round VI The goals: 1. Hanging around the bars! No, not those bars. I want to continue my work on the hanging bar and the floor bar (i.e., pull-up bar and parallettes). I've got the equipment; I just gotta use it. Three workouts weekly to get back in the hang of things. (+3STR, +2STA, +1CHA) 2. Get a Move On! I am a music nut. I've been acquiring quite a bit lately. And I'm a dancer: swing is my specialty, but I've found myself moving to lots of music, whether it's swing or not. So the challenge will be as follows: at least three times weekly, I will set the iTunes to shuffle for 10 minutes and will move how ever I see fit. (I have 15 days of music according to iTunes, so I will see what I come up with.) I'll provide a daily report of the songs I get in that 10 minute time. I think this'll be an interesting one. (+2STA, +2CHA, +1WIS) 3. Stretch it Out! My flexibility is pretty craptacular. Partially because of my arthritis. It's a war against inertia, age, and my own body attacking itself! Ack. Thrice weekly I will spend 20 minutes stretching or doing yoga. I'd like to be able to do a pike stretch and consistent toe touching. (+1CON, +1STR) 4. Life Goal: Hold the internet. I've been blocking my at-home internet for most of the day except the hours between 6 pm and 8:30 pm on my work days. I'd like to continue that and (gasp) do it on the weekends, too. I have loads of books lying around, and I have a national park outside my door. If I can keep off the at-home internets but for that 2.5-hour window, I will earn +2WIS Whaddya think? Oh, and to start us out on the right foot, so to speak: Our traditional swing video. It's an oldie, but a goodie. "For Dancers Only" is the song, and it's a fantastic one, performed live. My favorites are the first and last couples.

EDIT : I effed up my back somehow last week, so I put off my challenge until this week. I don't care about winning - I'm in to feel good again and build a routine set of habits. Since my back is still weird, I'm simplifying my routine just to make sure I do something, but to also try not to hurt myself (no health insurance). Also, since I've been unemployed for a month and my tax return is taking its sweet time finding its way to my bank account, I'm ditching the Paleo too. I need to eat what I have around the house and that's going to involve stuff outside of that framework. *shrug* Hey-o! Winter is killing me. In an effort to shake this hibernation situation, here's my challenge goals: 1) Couch to 5K Walking on treadmill 30 minutes M/W/F A - all 3 days B - 2 of 3 days C - 1 of 3 days F - no days 2) Nerd Fitness Rookie Yoga Workout (weeks 1-3) T/R/S & Recruit Nerd Fitness Rookie Workout (weeks 4-5) T/R/S A - all 3 days B - 2 of 3 days C - 1 of 3 days F - no days 3) Pull Up Workout Solitary Racquetball (fluid, not jerky) M/W/F http://greatist.com/fitness/i-want-to-do-a-pullup-022012/# A - all 3 days B - 2 of 3 days C - 1 of 3 days F - no days 4) No soda or fast food beginning week 1 / eat Paleo weeks 2-6 / 1 gallon of water per day A - all 7 days B - 5 of 7 days C - 3 of 7 days D - 1 of 7 days F - no days (soda / fast food) A - all 7 days B - 5 of 7 days C - 3 of 7 days D - 1 of 7 days F - no days (Paleo) A - all 7 days B - 5 of 7 days C - 3 of 7 days D - 1 of 7 days F - no days (gallon of water) 5) 30 minutes each day of calligraphy / drawing A - all 7 days B - 5 of 7 days C - 3 of 7 days D - 1 of 7 days F - no days I don't have a specific weight goal or progress goal. My umbrella goal is to create a sense of consistency and routine. My scale at home is not working, so I'll have to get a starting weight tomorrow at the gym. Let's do this thing.

I kinda blew my last challenge. Too much Christmas cheer. I enjoyed the food, but it's time to get back into the groove. My physical challenge is as follows: Execute Dr. Eades' Six Week Cure For the Middle Aged Middle. This is tailor made for me. I need to get rid of some fat and cannot tolerate lots of exercise due to joint issues. (STA2, CON2, WIS1) Do 10 pullups. My stretch goal is 20. If I manage to lose 10lbs, I may make it. My max in the past has been 7. I have been struggling with shoulder issues, but those seem to have resolved, so no excuses. (STR2, DEX1) Do a 2min yoga headstand. 30 years ago, I could do 3min. Now, I tend to get dizzy when inverted. I will take it slow, and see how far I can get. (STR1, DEX1, STA1, WIS1)My level up challenge: Learn two songs on my violin that require upper positions. I have been complacently playing folks songs in first position for decades. It is time to branch out. I have a great songbook of gypsy music, most of which requires upper positions. I will see how far I can get on Kalinka and Two Guitars, two popular numbers. (DEX1, WIS1, CHA2)

The topic title says it all in a nutshell. I discovered NF back in June 2012, and my mission has been to get stronger and healthier since then. Thanks to all of Steve's posts, various different resources and my recently-purchased copy of The Rebel Strength Guide, I hit 19 chinups over 4 sets during yesterdays workout. That is my personal best. Thank you all for being there and for being like-minded! HUZZAH!!!

I FINALLY DID IT! My first (and subsequently 5 more) pull-up! So since I can remember I was never able to do a complete pull up repetition (neither chin ups for that matter). So, I set is as a goal for this running 6 week challenge, and followed Steve's guide on how to get there. In the end it was easier than I expected, I tried for the first time in some years today and I did 2, then 2 more and then even more. You can read more about it in my challenge Thread. I'm so happy with myself and what I achieved I can't even put it into words right! Feels so GREAT!

The topic title says it all in a nutshell. I discovered NF back in June 2012, and my mission has been to get stronger and healthier since then. Thanks to all of Steve's posts, various different resources and my recently-purchased copy of The Rebel Strength Guide, I hit 19 chinups over 4 sets during yesterdays workout. That is my personal best. Thank you all for being there and for being like-minded! HUZZAH!!!