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After my grouchy self-satisfied brilliant surgeon signed off on my ACL replacement surgery last month, I was left feeling kind of flat. What's next? what is my fitness lifestyle going to look like? how do I focus the hard work I'd been putting towards recovery over the last 6 months towards other fitness goals, and what ARE those fitness goals? My first challenge here at NF was an ambitious and well planned undertaking: I was focused on endurance (faster 5Ks - below 30 min), strength (pull-ups and push-ups!) and skill (mastering all of the forms and techniques I needed to test for my 3rd degree black belt). and it was AWESOME. I was running a lot, following a 5K faster program, I was doing tkd 3x a week with dedication, and working on it outside of class, and I was following the academy body weight brigade and practicing handstands. AND THEN DISASTER, I tore my ACL right at the beginning of week 4, and I've been working to get back to whole ever since. which is not a bad thing, the last 4 challenges have been really great, have kept me super duper on track, and I'm proud of what I've accomplished. and I'm really happy to have spent them with y'all here on the boards, because without all of you, your support, and your advice, I am certain that even though I'd be good, I wouldn't be as amazing as I am today. but now I've got a lot of GOOD THINGS to worry about! PRACTICALLY PERFECT NEW KNEE! A MILLION THINGS I WANT TO DO! AMAZING PROGRESS SO FAR! these are some great puzzle pieces to work with! what the puzzle is going to look like, though - that's the problem to solve this challenge. I need to figure out how to fit together a reasonable exercise regimen that meshes with my other time commitments and lifestyle. I'm gonna come back and add specific goals, but right now my challenge is going to look something like this: * couch to 5K * weights for arms (gotta get to the pull-up!) and legs (keep recovery moving from ACL) * food (I know I have to start to dial this in a little to hit my next "the way I look" level up) * long term goal - to get the push-up and pull-up. my plan is to quit going to the gym and working again on bodyweight stuff, but I want to use the gym to get me to the pull-up first. I'm trying to match my fitness goals to my workout time in a way that will bring only success and the accolades of my peers (THAT'S YOU), so I'll edit with new goals in a bit. GOAL TIME, PEEPS. Goal 1: HIT THE GYM. calendar is going to be key. I hav a bunch of stuff to do, and I need to fit it all in. I've done this before and I'm really good at this kind of routine, so here are my components: * Couch to 5K. Run 3x a week. I've done C25K before several times - basically whenever I want to get back into running form. this is a 9 week program but I will fit it into the 6 week challenge by starting at Week 4. Right now I'm warming up for 3 minutes, and then running 3 minutes/walking 1 minutes for 4 reps., followed by a 3 min. cool down. Week 4 launches in with intervals of running up to 5 minutes long. I should be able to do it. * all the weights. 2x a week, all of them, all of them. I want to keep working on my leg strength for PT reasons, and I want to keep working on arm/shoulders/back strength so I can keep moving towards a pull-up. I have been doing weights at 10x3 reps, but I am going to switch to 8x3 and push for increases on weight faster than I have been. Goal 2: MOVE MY BODY. I'm really good at routine, but not great at working in new things. These are movements that long-term, I want to be pro at: push-ups * l-sits * handstands * planks * hooping * tae kwon do forms * bar hangs/grip and knee raises * nunchucks (don't hit self in back of head) I'll award myself points for practice on these. 3 points/week is good. 5 is great. 7 is I am a superhero and stupendous. if I make over 30 points over the period of the challenge, I think I should get something awesome. I'm not sure what that thing is. practice counts as: 2 minutes total for planking (actual time in a plank) or bar hangs (all time, including grip time, going up and getting down time, and shaking out hands time). 3 minutes for l-sits/handstands (including my rest time). 3 sets of 5 reps for incline push-ups or bar hangs (knee raises). 5 minutes for hooping session or for 'chucks. A full TKD form done at least 2 times (or 2 different forms). Goal 3: DIAL IN THE FUEL. Keep on tracking all that foods! And for this challenge, for real stay within calorie budgets. I did good on this last challenge (all holidays considered), and I need to continue to do well. I am planning to really dial in my fuel sources next challenge (i.e., stop squeezing beers and cookies into my caloric budget, focus on good clean proteins, etc) but this challenge will be a struggle enough to fit in the gym time I need, so I'm kind of maintaining, kind of prepping for next time with this goal. LIFE GOAL: As much as I'm telling everyone that 2015 is the YEAR OF THE PULL-UP. pull-up practice is included in the GYM TIME goal. What I really need to do is make my home nice. There are so many things I want to do that I can't right now because we have disaster rooms. We still haven't gotten the closet installed in our bedroom. I can't get out my sewing machine and make new work skirts (which I am on the verge of badly needing) because the craft room is disaster cakes. So the life goal: get the closet up. That's first. If I accomplish that, I'll get another goal in that has to do with cleaning out the blue room or the craft room. And I need to focus on this NOW, because my husband is off for winter break from his part-time school this month.