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Late to the party, whoops, but I did just return from vacation on Monday. I trailed off on the last challenge but don't feel terrible about it because it was insanely hectic - not the most stressed I've ever been, but definitely the most major events in a month. Plus at the beginning of the challenge I wasn't planning on the Italy work trip, and then that happened in the middle of everything. My healthy routines were thoroughly disrupted, but I still squeezed in a little exercise and some vegetables. I'm thrilled to be home, and in my own kitchen and bed again (not at the same time, obviously). After eating out most meals for three weeks, I am excited to cook balanced, delicious meals at home. Overall Goals My general life goals have changed a bit because, uh, I'm pregnant and all - so weight loss is no longer the primary aim. I weighed myself this morning and was unpleasantly surprised by the number on the scale, but the internet tells me it's normal to have gained 4-6lb at this point even though the baby is only the size of a raspberry, so I feel better about it now. I'm going to stop weighing myself at home because it makes more sense to focus on make healthy choices each day. I've cancelled my NF Coaching because I already feel a bit overwhelmed, and through work I'm going to be assigned an RN who will advise on healthy eating and exercise throughout my pregnancy. But I have even stronger reasons to eat healthy, and I won't be drinking ha, so I'm going to focus on paying attention to how I feel - more frequent, small meals seems to sit better with me these days. I am currently working to use up a lot of my pantry/freezer food which has been accumulating for...a while. I also want to declutter since we mayyy buy a house and move before the baby comes. Goal #1: Cook all the things Make (nearly) all our food at home, avoid relying on processed food. I'd like to get in a good pattern of meal prep and eating at home pre-baby. Document food here. Goal #2: Feel the burn Work out doing whatever feels good. Right now that's barre but I'd like to try to get running again if I can do it without chest pain. Aiming for working out 3x/week minimum, and walking on other days to aid digestion and circulation. Goal #3: Feed the fire Take extra kind care of myself. Give myself an 8-hour sleep window. Nap if needed. Meditate daily. I have FIVE WEEKS before our family vacation when we tell the family, and I have already told random coworkers in Italy (because finding out I was pregnant the week before the trip was anxiety-inducing), a couple coworkers I am closer to (because we were on vacation for a week and they wouldn't have figured it out from the not drinking anyways, and this way I was able to talk to a friend who had twins last year about it), and another friend (who I stayed with on the way to and from the Florida vacation, because we're close and it was nice to do it in person). Between now and the official family announcement at which point it will be public, I will probably tell a couple more friends because as an external processor keeping secrets is not my strong suit. It still feels completely surreal, but in the best way.

I've been complaining for two years that I did not want to be "Luke Skywalker, Jedi Legend", and withdraw. And while the Jedi Master was redeemed in my eyes by his character arc in The Last Jedi, that didn't mean that, starting in December, I had to go join him in hermit-like seclusion until now. But I kind of did - except there was no awesome island monastery, just frozen-assed wintry Minnesota, and no straight-from-the-source liquid nutrition. I didn't completely collapse into my couch - I've been working out, although not consistently, and I'm not back to square one as a runner. However, if I expect to achieve my goals for the coming year, it's time to force-project myself back into the universe and get busy. Main Goal I'll be travelling to England in October to compete in the 2018 OCR World Championships for the second year in a row. In 2017, I qualified as an age group competitor twice during the season and competed in a group of similarly grey-bearded men. I'll be going again this year regardless of whether I qualify and will run as a journeyman if necessary, but it's my goal to qualify to race against other 50-and-over men again this year, and this time, I don't want to just show up and be happy I'm there. I want to go home with an additional souvenir from the weekend that can't be bought: With the exception of my first OCR love, Spartan Race, most obstacle race series expect pro and competitive racers to COMPLETE ALL THE OBSTACLES in order to reach the podium or at the very least land in the "podium eligible" column. Everyone else is an official finisher, but those of me in the other category are not eligible for podiums - overall or age group. To make sure officials can tell who falls into which category, racers get a band, which is removed when one cannot complete an obstacle, usually after multiple attempts. I'm pretty obstacle proficient, and have been for some time. This year, I'm aiming for 100% completion at the World Championships. I can't just decide "FITNESS!" and achieve my goals of qualifying for and competing in the World Championships (and, on the way, the North American OCR Championships); it's going to take months of training to get there. It's a good thing I know what works for me: SMART goals with plenty of checkpoint events to keep me motivated on my quest to qualifying. Goal: Strength I've struggled my entire life with upper body strength. I have bad family genetics and without consistent strength training, I turn back into a limp dishrag. Besides, I enjoy weight training. I need to supplement this with training that includes pull-ups and other raise-my-bodyweight exercises. The group classes I attend don't incorporate pull-ups basically because neither the instructors or many of the other attendees can't do them and are intimidated by them. I need them because arms, shoulders and back will help with obstacle proficiency and efficiency. Plan: Strength training 3x per week: Weight training Tuesday, Boot Camp Thursday/Saturday, Grease the Groove pull-up work every day. Goal: Speed I have gone from "I'm not a runner" to "I enjoy trail running." The problem is, it's aggressively winter here (my beard froze in seconds the morning I wrote this) and all the trails are frozen wakes of ice and terror. Also, the cold aggrivates my psoriatic arthritis. Also I just plain hate the cold. I'm running on the Dreadmill until conditions outside change. Pray for me. Last year I hired a running coach to give me a running improvement plan. It wasn't revolutionary and it was directly based on stuff that literally everyone is teaching: speed intervals, consistent mileage, weekend long run. He tailored the plan to my schedule and my starting baseline speed and I saw enough improvement that I put up OCRWC qualifying times in two separate events last year. It works. I'm working on getting back into this plan; right now I'm building up my mileage from a winter of not much running while mixing in intervals. "Long" runs are relative. I know this works. Consistency will get me there. Plan: Run a minimum of 3x per week, including 3-mile VO2 max interval training, 3-4 mile lactate threshold training, and weekend long run. Goal: Skill I've learned over the last four years of competing in Obstacle Course races that while one could probably power their way through many obstacles with sheer strength, there is a certain degree of skill necessary for things like rope climbing and rigs and Devil Steps and zip lines and whatnot. Plan: Weekly obstacle workout at Obstacle Academy. Have a specific training plan every time instead of just going in and goofing around on the toys. Goal: Sustenance Because "Nutrition" does not alliterate with all my other "S" goals. I lost a bunch of weight five years ago by tracking my nutritional macros and I've kept it off by doing the same. I've occasionally dropped five to ten pounds in between that has not stayed off because when I'm not tracking macros, I eat junk. I just got a brand new jersey for Christmas from my GF and her family and I want it to fit, but right now I'm looking more like Kung Fu Panda than I'd like. It's time to get serious about getting little in the middle. Plan: Log my food daily. Stick to my macros. Goal: Sanity I wish I could quantify this as a SMART goal, but I can't. Stuff has gone fully sideways at work for reasons completely out of my control and I'm working to stay afloat as best I can while balancing a busy non-work life. This is more a reminder for me to be mindful and spend some time in self-care daily. Hey Jedi man, what events are happening during your challenge? I try to always have at least one event per month to keep my motivation up and my training focused. January was a planned bust, as I have given up pavement running due to the pounding on my arthritic joints, but February will end with a busy weekend. I'll be leaving on 21 February to drive with my GF from our home in Minnesota to drop her off for three weeks near Orlando, Florida. That's over 22 hours of driving, one-way with a stop on Thursday just north of Nashville to visit my brother and his family. When we get there, I'll be running multiple laps at the Central Florida Terrain Race on Saturday... ... and then driving to Miami to run the Spartan Sprint on Sunday. Both will be good tests for me to gauge my early-season form and fitness, determine my weaknesses, and set goals for improvement. It will feel good to get back on the horse, but I'm going to need support to keep focused. I'm glad I've got this place to come to for that. Rangers, Rebels, Nerds, thanks for being here.

So I'm out of the chrysalis and getting ready to fly! GOAL Lose 5lbs, since that's approximately 4% of my current weight. That should take me down to 122lbs by the end of the challenge. Keep myself sane while being mostly unemployed.QUESTS Eat 1200-1400 calories per day. I'm sad to report that I will not be following the mid-70s Bowie diet of milk, cocaine and peppers. Mainly because I'm intolerant to peppers.Substitute juice/soda with water. And drink more water generally.Complete Darebee's 30-Day HIIT Challenge Complete Men's Health 3 Week Home Dumbbell Workout, and don't eat estimated calories back!!!Read something that isn't on a screen for at least 30 minutes a day, because my life's turning into this:Finish Berklee's songwriting MOOC. Alright! No need to take the piss!Engage with art once a week - movie/literature if poor; art gallery or theatre if already in town or if I suddenly have enough money to travel into town especiallyAnd just for lols, complete Cassy Ho's Journey to Splits STATS Weight: 127lbs Waist: 28" Hips: 36.6" Abdomen: 31" Bust: 34" Overbust: 32" Underbust: 28.5" Thigh: 20.5" Calf: 13.5" Neck: 13.5" * I am neither thin, white, nor a member of the British aristocracy, but I am missing David Bowie something rotten.

My main goal is to stay "sane" for the next two weeks between challenges. To acheive this goal, I'm going to: Take my medication daily. Not take on any extra projects. Feed my spirit daily. Attend my addiction recovery program on Thursdays. Attend church on Sundays. 15 minutes of grounding meditation every day.

In continuation of the last challenge thread. See also how it began. TL;DR version at the bottom. Book 4 – Prologue "Enjoy your stay.", the jailer said as he locked the door behind me. And, as he walked away, he added "Hehe… this never gets old." I looked around. Everything in here just screamed "prison cell". Grey walls, a bunk, a basin and a toilet, all of which looked like they hadn't been cleaned in years. Yep, this definitely was a prison cell if anything. Which really was quite fine… …except that I wasn't supposed to be in prison, I was supposed to be in an asylum! And heck, I wasn't even really supposed to be there either! Why the hell was I here?! What had I done wrong?! "Hmmmmm…", I heard a voice grumble. Feeling quite uneasy about what I just heard, I turned to the cell to my left, where I had heard the voice from. A gruff-looking guy with scars along his face and pretty dirty teeth was smiling at me. But not in the good way. " "Oh crap. I backed off from the wall as far as I could. "Here, boy! Here, boy!" Suddenly… "Aaagh!", the guy screamed, clutching his neck. "What the— ugh." And then he collapsed. "Just in time, eh?", a voice from behind me said. I turned to the back wall and saw Emma smiling at me through the cell window bars. "Emma! What are you doing here?" "Tracking you down, sweetcheeks. And I should be the one asking. How did you end up in the Rangus Asylum?" "Beats me. They just said something about me not having my sanity, then they dumped me here without telling me what they meant or letting me say anything to my defense." "Oh. Yeah, the Rangus Asylum is known to do that." "Really?" "They check others for signs of lunacy, and if they find any, then they lock you up. Simple. Thing is, the 'signs' they use aren't really signs of lunacy at all… If anything, they are the lunatics here. But since they have weapons, and they look like legitimate guards, they use their power to lock up whomever they can get a hold of… before the others know who they're dealing with." "Ugh, great. So you're saying they're a bunch of criminals appearing to be law enforcement?" "Pretty much, yeah." "So I didn't do anything wrong?" "Nope." "Then I gotta get out of here." "No kidding. Not at least because of the neighbors you have here." "Say, what did you do to him anyway? Is he dead?" "Oh, no, just unconscious. A fast-acting toxin, but ultimately non-lethal. …well, I can't guarantee it in an environment full of dangerous people like this one, but normally it just knocks you out for about a day or two." "But how did you administer the toxin? I didn't see anything." "A very thin needle, and my trusty blowpipe." "A blowpipe?" "I never leave home without it. You don't have one, sweetcheeks?" "Of course not. I'm not a ninja." "You mean: not yet." "Yeah, well, if I ever want to live long enough to even start my ninja training, I first gotta get out of here." "Oh sweetcheeks…", Emma grinned at me. "Ever so young and naïve…" "What's that supposed to mean?", I asked. "Your ninja training began the instant you entered this cell." "Wait, what?!" "Listen up, student! Your next task as a ninja trainee… is to escape from the Rangus Asylum. You have six weeks." "Whaaaaaaaaat?! Emma, this is serious! Now's not the time to make a game out of this." "Au contraire, monsieur. This is precisely the time to make a game out of it. Because the last thing we need is you freezing up in fear of not managing to escape, and ultimately failing to escape because of that fear. Or worse, get yourself killed that way." "But I—" "No buts." "But how—" "You'll have to figure that out by yourself." "Wait, does that mean you're not helping me?" "Yes and no. Yes, I'm helping you escape, but no, I'm not going to actively step in until you screw up big time. I'll be playing your safety net, so to speak. But you'll have to do all the work yourself." "Why…?" "Because I'm sure you got into this mess by yourself. Knowing you, you didn't even try to disarm the guards when they started being rough with you. You gotta stop thinking that ultimately nobody wants to hurt you, because there are a bunch of people out there who actually do." "…" "You know, you should be happy. This is real hands-on ninja training. I've been locked up many times now, and I've had to escape by myself each time too. This is the real-deal. It doesn't get any more applied than this." "Emma, you're gonna get me killed!" "I told you, sweetcheeks, I'll step in before anyone gets a chance to do that." "Ugh. You can't be serious." "I am." "*sigh* I realize. But I'm still hoping this all turns out to be a bad dream." "Well, I hope you come to terms with reality soon, sweetcheeks. It's coming close to lights out time. And in an asylum, lights out means lights out. No ifs, whens or buts. At least you'll be getting some decent sleep… once you're good enough at shutting out the screams." "D:" "Same thing for waking up. Lights on is lights on. There's no 'please just five more minutes' thing." "D:" "Oh, and since you have lots of free time, and quite a bit of space, I expect you to continue your strength training. You'll probably need it to survive here." "D:" "Well then, that's all the guidance I can give you for now. Except maybe one more tip: the guards have no freaking clue who's locked up where. If you need to go undetected for a while, just enter the nearest empty cell. Or even a shared cell, if you're sure your cellmates won't tell on you." "Emma, this isn't 'Assassin's Creed'." "No, but it's close enough to it. You'll be missing out on Eagle Vision, but that's just about it." "…" "Right. The patrol is coming around in a few minutes, so I'm off. And don't worry too much, sweetcheeks. I'm not bailing you out of here precisely because you gotta learn to swim by yourself. And because I know that you don't really need me to help you here." "Oh. Uh, thanks." "Anytime, sweetcheeks. Now, go show them what it means to be a Monk of the Rebellion! And my student!" "Yes, ma'am!" Emma got up and stepped away, but turned back one more time. "Oh, and when you're out, I expect you to do 30 push-ups for not calling me 'coach' three times. Got it?" Oh, what the— ugh. "Aye-aye, Coach!" End of prologue Author's comments: The usual "yada yada yada" about creative freedom and such. And I've never been to an asylum or a prison before… at least not outside of video games and TV shows. TL;DR: challenge goals Baseline goals Go to bed by 12am midnight. No ifs, whens or buts. Lights out means lights out.Wake up by 9am and get ready straight away. That means brushing teeth, taking shower, shaving and having breakfast. If I genuinely oversleep despite going to bed by 12am, no matter… provided I still get ready straight away.Do bodyweight strength training (the Convict Conditioning workout programs) 3 times a week. Usually on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.Additional optional challenges Low- or medium-intensity workout on rest days. Stretching, martial arts form practice, Tai Chi… whatever I can think of. The point is to get into the habit of doing exercise every day, not necessarily to progress in those exercises.Write one blawg post per week. What kind of blawg only has one post? A dead blawg. Who wants to own a dead blawg? No one.Keep my backlog below five days. Post progress updates here more regularly, instead of two weeks worth of updates in a single post. Hopefully this will free up time to read (and comment on) other people's threads too.Post an act of book 4 at least once every two weeks. Need to keep the story going. But my blawg needs more of my attention, so I'm not committing to anything more than this.Motivation I'm tired of running (what should be) the minutiae of my life on auto-pilot before having taught my auto-pilot how to fly. Why the "escapes from the asylum" theme? My last challenge (“Multiplexingâ€) failed, and I lost my timetable during that challenge. By losing my timetable, I lost my sanity. In my last mini-challenge (“redeeming my sanityâ€), I didn't regain my sanity. So I don't have my sanity anymore. I thus conclude that I am by definition insane. And that's how I ended up in the asylum. Also, I'm breaking out because I don't like it here. It's the color, ya know?

In which M, a.k.a. the 13th letter, puts the disappointments of the predecing challenge #3 (the “pastâ€) behind himself and strives to re-reach the state of sanity he experienced during the better days of challenges #1 and #2 (the “golden daysâ€). Specifically, while the past went markedly different than the golden days, there is one striking difference between them: I actually had a semblance of a timetable. I was a student during the golden days, and just before the past, I transitioned to unemployed, obliterating whatever shards of a timetable I had left. And now, without any structure or rhythm to my days, every task turns into a "eh, maybe I'll do it now… or later… or tomorrow". We both know this doesn't truly work, like, ever. So, for this mini-challenge, I vow to adhere to a timetable, and through this timetable I hope to regain my rhythm, and through this rhythm I hope to regain my sanity. Specifically, here are the cornerstones of my timetable: Go to bed by 12am (midnight). I regularly stay awake beyond that, mostly for frivolous reasons. Be ready for the day by 11am. "Being ready" means showered, shaved, dressed and fed. And though I'm actually setting an alarm for 9am, I expect it to take a while for me to get used to not oversleeping anymore. I will award myself 1 point per full hour before 11am that I am ready. Stick to whatever tasks from “the past†I plan to do today. I'm continuing the work, though at a lower frequency. And here are the rewards: If I successfully stick to my timetable for all 13 days (Dec 24th through Jan 5th), I shall mark my challenge #3 as successful. If I additionally collect 13 points from being ready early, then I'll treat myself, somehow. I haven't decided yet on what. Well then, now that everything's settled, there's only one thing left to do: Let's get dangerous!

Well, my last challenge, the theme of which was “Finish The Damn Challenge†failed pretty spectacularly. I finished half the challenge, basically -- which means I didn't finish the challenge. When the end of week 3 rolled around, it was like a switch flipped in my head and that was the end of that. So, what HAVE I done successfully? I continue to attend belly dance classes weekly. This group of ladies and our weekly class have become significant parts of my week now. I did finish reading “If You Had Controlling Parents†by Dan Neuharth. This book was really, really helpful.I flossed and rinsed a lot more often than usual; it hasn’t been daily, but it was daily for the first three weeks and then 2-3 times per week most of the rest of the weeks. That’s still a lot more flossing and rinsing than before the challenge. The past 8 weeks of my life have been the hardest I have ever encountered and have seen some major life changes. My family and I currently are not speaking, at my request; their behavior back in September was simply too hurtful and I could not go on pretending that nothing had happened, even though that seemed to be what they desperately wanted to do. Three days ago I mailed two handwritten cards: one to my parents, and one to one of my brothers. I toiled for many long hours, writing and rewriting drafts until all the vitriol was gone and all that was left was my sadness. I simply told them that I loved them, but that they had hurt me too much to go on without some sort of acknowledgement or amends, and that I would not be returning their repeated calls because the telephone is too vulnerable and unsafe. I invited them to open a new email exchange with me if they would like to try again from scratch. I sent the letters for me; the ring of my phone and the blinking voicemail light had become triggers, spiking my amygdala into fight-or-flight in seconds flat. I entered this situation with my family in September never wanting to hurt anybody; I tried my best to avoid hurting them but in the process I did not protect myself. Things have changed, and we can’t go back to the way it was. This is the new normal. I’m not harboring any rose-colored hopes that my letters somehow contain the magic words to make my family come around to seeing that I’m not an abominable snowman. The letter simply represents me walking away in order to protect myself. My body is wrecked. My sleep is nonexistant; at the time of this writing, I am going on three nights of horrendous sleep, with last night being the maraschino cherry on this sundae of suck: maybe 4 nonconsecutive hours of sleep. My eating is all over the place. Sometimes it’s emotional eating and sometimes it’s just exhaustion leading me to grab whatever’s handy. It's almost all bread, dairy, and sugar. SO many digestive issues. My physical activity, aside from belly dance and the occasional yoga session, has been nonexistant too. I feel very, very old. I actually thought I missed this challenge. I logged onto NF today to update my profile so that my NF friends would know that I am okay and just taking a break for a bit. But when I saw that the current challenge doesn’t start until tomorrow, I thought that maybe I will join in and try, try again. Oh, and I'm back with the Rangers; I started out a Ranger, and I think I will always be a Ranger at my core. Main Goal: Feel Better - Improve Sleep and Reduce Stomach Issues The theory behind the action steps: based on my daily patterns, sleep and stomach concerns will be best addressed by adding physical activity back into my day and by honing in on healthy meals while cutting back on the foods that I know I have a sensitivity to. By the end of the challenge, I would like to be off the sleeping pills and I would like to have no or infrequent stomach issues. Action Steps: 1. Complete an off-skate derby training (bodyweight) workout 3x per week 2. Eat one meal per day that is grain-free, dairy-free, and sugar-free. 3. Belly dance: class 1x per week, practice session 1x per week LQ - Play more games: I love games, specifically tabletop games. Gaming is consistently one of the most successful and longest-lasting mood boosters for me. Tabletop gaming provides social interaction, gets my brain going, and uses creativity. And it’s fun as heck. I want to play games on at least 2 nights a week. SQ - attend Get In Gear Night at Derby Lite on Nov 19 with my friend Stacey. This is an intro night to Derby Lite, which is a roller derby-based group and fitness class. It can be just a fitness class, or it can be used as a training tool for skaters who want to try out for Maine Roller Derby, depending on the interests/abilities of the skater. The next session Derby Lite classes start in January. My derby training action step above is hopefully going to be a good way to tap into the fun of derby training while prepping for the weekly classes in 2014. I find I do best when my workouts are training for something, and I have to confess finally that I simply do not like running enough to keep training for races. I'm putting simplified updates below in this initial post, to hopefully counteract the tendency to stop posting completely around week 4. If I post full updates and interact with others on my thread, awesomesauce; if not, at least I can put the basic goal updates here. Nov 11-17 Derby Training: 1/3 training sessions Meals: 5/7 days with 1 meal grain-free, sugar-free, dairy-free (mostly breakfasts) Belly Dance: 1/1 class, 0/1 practice session. Gaming: I lost count; played MTG most days. I'm going to say 5/7 days. Nov 18-24 Derby Training: Meals: Belly Dance: Gaming: Get In Gear Night: ATTENDED and omg it was so awesome you guys. Nov 25-Dec1 Derby Training: Meals: Belly Dance: Gaming: Dec 2-8 [in Austin 4th-11th] Derby Training: Meals: Belly Dance: Gaming: Dec 9-15 [in Austin 4th-11th] Derby Training: Meals: Belly Dance: Gaming: Dec 16-22 Derby Training: Meals: Belly Dance: Gaming:

Last challenge I got really stressed out. It was my 6th challenge in a row and I ended up scrapping it on purpose on week 3. I had to cut myself a break, or I was going to lose my mind. A lot of stuff about my life changed. I gave up paleo. I gave up running. I started walking. I started eating whatever I want, and wouldn't you know after 9 months of clean eating, what I want is mostly clean food. Huh. I gave up body-comp, size, and weight goals. I realized I like my body the shape that it is. I also realized I spend a whole lot of time screaming at my body that it's terrible and it better shape up or else, and no time acknowledging that my body is healthy, it works properly, I can't remember the last time I had an illness of any kind, and I can do the things I want to do with my time. All this time, while I've been berating it, my body has been quietly doing what it does so I can do what I want to do. Who knew. My ultimate goal for the next 6 weeks is to live my life as it is right now, and find all the little nooks and crannies of happiness that are already there. I have chosen 2 goals instead of the traditional 4. I do not have a diet goal; after 9 months of strict paleo, my dietary habits are pretty much above reproach. I can trust myself around food. I am not running or doing bodyweight exercises right now. I need a break from them for a short while, so I have chosen to walk and do yoga instead. If you sleep for 8 hours and work for 8 hours, that leaves 8 hours left on weekdays (and more on weekends) to do whatever you want. When the walking and the yoga sessions are done each day, I will be spending the rest of my hours getting outside and into the community to enjoy summer 2013. And blogging about it. This is my 7th challenge. I will be settling back into the shadows to heal and recover, getting mentally stronger and physically more balanced. I am planning to resume traditional 4-goal challenges with challenge #8 (which I'm already planning, and it's going to be epic). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [sambieWlks] Chapter the Seventh: Now Goal 1: Walk 1 mile daily I measured a one-mile loop on the back roads by my house, and I want to walk this circuit each morning. If I miss a morning walk, I can do it later in the day. Scoring: Tally (42 days = 100%) XP: +3 STA, +3 CON, +2 WIS Goal 2: Complete the DoYogaWithMe 6-Week Beginner Program I have been using DoYogaWithMe's free online videos for several months now and I love them. I just discovered they have a new 6-week introductory program that combines their tutorials with the routines in an organized progression. I'm not a super beginner with yoga, but the structure and content of this program really appeals to me. And, most of the routines are ones I've not done before, so I am really excited to dive in. Scoring: Total Weeks Completed (6 weeks completed = 100%) XP: +3 DEX, +2 CHA, +2 WIS Bonus: Participate in the weekly mini-challenges in the Assassins' forum. Secret goals: Accomplishing these goals are like getting a chipmunk to eat out of my hand*. Right now, I'm sitting veeeery still with a pile of birdseed in my hand and the chipmunk is RIGHT THERE MAN. I'm already doing these goals on autopilot; the last thing I want to do is Make It A Big Deal and jinx the streak. So shhhh don't look at these goals directly in the eyes, don't make any sudden movements, don't make a lot of noise, and hopefully they won't run away. **Meditate daily. 1 minute will do, 7 minutes is better (my current level), 10 minutes is great. **Take my herbs and supplements daily. I hate swallowing pills. It's such a big to-do, and herby supplement pills always seem to be the size of a baby carrot. But, gots to do it to get the benefits. *Based on a true story - when I was little I found a chipmunk hole in the ground and I wanted that chipmunk to be my friend. So one day I sat on the ground next to the hole, dumped a bucket of sunflower seeds on my legs to completely cover my lap, and waited. I sat more still than any child has ever sat in the history of children and/or sitting, and I was rewarded with a chipmunk sitting on my leg eating seeds. Until my brother snuck up behind me and yelled ON PURPOSE to scare it away. Brothers. Man. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- These are the weekly updates you're looking for: Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6