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Hi! Just gonna hang out here today. No real challenge goals. Just some reporting in from time to time!

Backstory: While having a polyphasic sleep schedule in the past, although only for a week or two and participating unexpectedly in the 4x4x48 challenge in the last challenge, I came to favor the way the challenge was executed. Though only having 1-2 hours of sleep per segment is a bit little and quite stressful in the long run. Thus it makes more sense to have longer segments like 8h or 12h. Challenges: The main challenge is to follow triphasic exercise regime in such a matter that one exercises every 8 hours. On top of that, implementing at least a biphasic sleep schedule, divided into a 6h and 3h segment. A minor challenge for April that should be fairly easy achievable is "The Sunrise Year of the Ox": 400 burpees 400 pushups 400 squats 400 2-count lunges 40 miles Goals: The first goal is to achieve the 100 ruck kilometers within a week. Averages to 14.3 km per day. The bonus goal is to achieve the 100 ruck miles within a week. Averages to 22.9 km per day. Things to do till it starts: On 28th March test the duration for the following exercises: 50 pushups 50 high jumps 50 situps 50 burpees 50 pullups 50m bear crawl 50m low crawl Test again on 1st May. Additionally, slowly acclimate into the schedule. Update: 28.03.2021 (see below) Update: 04.04.2021 25% lunges completed 25% squats completed 50% distance completed Updated: 11.04.2021 100% distance completed Updated: 01.05.2021 (*) Push Ups and Pull Ups were tracked using a level based system of different bar height. For Push Ups both time and amount of push ups at the lowest bar improved. Although the Pull Up time decreased the bar difficulty also decreased. Conclusions The Year of the Ox Challenge was completed on the 29th April, thus giving me a rest day before re-test on the first. In total there was definite improvement in the re-test, although most exercises weren't even practiced between the endpoints. Sadly wasn't able to get 100km in per week, the best was 70km. Biphasic sleep schedule was an idealistic goal and was only achieved on some days throughout the time period.

I'm still here, still putting in the work. Just time to redouble the efforts and keep moving forward. Not going to lie I'm not thrilled with my own lack of interactions of late so I'll be focusing on that with the new challenge. Running remains my main activity cause I've love it. quest 1 - going the distance Didn't get to double digits in the last two challenges but will keep pushing. Running is a high point of my day 90% of the time, so getting to run more is a good thing. quest 2 - limit the booze Still keeping this going - I've been doing a bit too much boozing thanks to the year long lock down. quest 3 - can't run then walk Morning walks are the other main activity in my life, I'll try to be more present with my wife during our strolls through the city and be mindful of what she's saying as well as having ideas to add of my own. quest 4 - get more social Feeling the distance between myself and friends growing all the time - will try to do one ping a week to friends to just try and catch up.

Hey all! So I was doing this challenge thing before COVID ruined stuff, but now's the time to get back in because the gym where I lift is open and I can work on some things now. To make a long story very short, I bought a new road bike at the end of 2020 and hurt myself because it didn't fit quite right. Fits now, so I'm training back up in the hopes of keeping up with my group rides, improving my fitness and knocking off some of the quarantine weight by fixing the diet. 4 goals: - 3 Lifting Days a week. - 80 miles (or more) a week on the road bike. -more water intake (less coca cola) -veggies with every meal. For the lifting, I run a modified version of Wendler's 5/3/1 with assistance work a little more specific to cycling and a little lighter so that I can have strength and riding. Monday 5/3/1 Low Bar Squat Lateral Step-Up --5 x 5 at 20 lbs. Ab Wheel -- 5 x 5 Tuesday 5/3/1 Bench Press Push-Ups 5 x 5 TRX Inverted Row 5 x 5 Wednesday 5/3/1 Deadlift Single Leg Deadlift -- 5 x 5 at 12 lbs. Planks -- 5 x 30 seconds Lifting is done by Wednesday so I can ride Saturday and Sunday to get miles in. I may also either add a Wednesday or Thursday evening ride in here too depending on how it goes. Between Saturday and Sunday, I put 88 miles on the bike this weekend. 42 miles on the group ride Saturday and 46 on my planned 30 mile ride today. Here's bike porn picture 1 of the Emonda and a picture of the lake I went out to today.

I'm working towards a back handspring (BHS). I'm doing a PPL+core+parkour+running routine. In my last challenge, I learned how to do back walkovers over a rail. In this challenge, I'll start doing macacos, with the goal of eventually turning them into a BHS. Progressions are: - land macaco on left leg (plus on a straight line) - land macaco on right leg (plus on a straight line) - stand to macaco (squat down first, then fall back/put hand down) - jump to a double hand macaco. If I can put both hands down at once, then both feet, I'll be close to a BHS. Jump back, not up (up=coming down hard on wrists) - swing arms more and more overhead until going straight over - ??? - profit I'm expecting the fourth step to be the hardest. I might try some of the variations here: I lost my climb up, I want that back. And I want to work on kongs. I've also gained some mobility in my hips in the last few challenges and I want to do some kicks to get used to my newfound powers. Also jefferson curls (after leg day) and shoulder dislocates (after pull day). Progression for J-curls are: starting with partial/full band assisted sit up, then partial J-curls (unweighted), then full J-curls (unweighted), then partial/full weighted, adding 5-10 lbs every 2-3 challenges. Progressing slowly (months) is key, too much weight too soon can be bad. I'm a bit unsure when it comes to foam rolling/stretching the upper half of my body, so maybe that's something to look into during this challenge. Another thing I need to work on are my social skills, but I don't have any goals figured out for that yet. I think that's all. Main quests - Maintain strength/flexibility in non-BHS related areas. I want to be able to do a BHS AND all the stuff I can currently do, not either/or. - Work on things that will eventually lead to a BHS. My current options for progressions include rail walkovers, suicide kip ups, and macacos. Side quests - Read Becoming a Supple Leopard everyday. Currently at pg 110/1003. If I do 26 pages a day I can finish by the end of the challenge. Around 10 pages a day is more realistic. - Watch a video (2 max) of The Ready State/Mobility WOD every day and take notes. Background quests (solid habits)

Last challenge against obesity was a success (BMI there and body fat at 25.0% and just need 0.1% lower). So keeping the same goals but upping weekly mileage from 21 to 24. Goals 1) Use the fancy scale every day 2) Log all calories 3) Eat at least 6 servings of vegetables a day 4) Run every day 5) Run 24 miles a week

I'm in a little bit of a slump training-wise. I need to either commit to marathon training or not. And I have a small nagging injury (my toe joint...literally a small area) that I'm starting to become more concerned about. My "old lady back" is being a little cranky, and I'm sick of it. I'm taking zero week to figure out a plan. Zero week goals/strategies 1. Try more-or-less following my running plan, but scale back if feeling pain...cut any workout short, and/or take a day off. 2. Ice daily...this helps a lot 3. Try to figure out which shoes might be better/worse. Take the trail shoes out of the rotation and mostly wear the new road shoes. 4. Minimal pull-up work...does it hurt my back?? 5. Repeat the good yoga for back pain video. 6. Try another yoga video 7. Aim for at least 10 min "body work" every day (yoga, focused stretching and/or foam rolling) 8. Get out of bed by 6:45 every week day. 9. Come up with a plan for the rest of the challenge. Challenge Goals 1**. Placeholder running goal: Walk outside every day for at least 10 minutes. 2. Get up by 6:45 every week day (shifting earlier through the challenge) 3. At least 10 minutes of yoga or body work every day 4. Quick strength 2x per week (modifying as needed). 5. Read up to page 150 of "El amor en los tiempos del colera" (I found this on the giveaway pile at work a couple years back and was never willing to put the work into slogging through it. I've read a bunch of novels that were translated into Spanish, but it's a lot harder to read something written by a native speaker. Figured I could manage ~5 pages a day). ** I'll replace #1 with some kind of actual running goal if that seems like a good idea. The snowdrops? I have a bunch around my house, and last fall planted a bunch of new bulbs. Yesterday, as the snow was falling I realized that a chunk of winter is over and the snowdrops will be coming up soon-ish...probably some time during this challenge. I'm not much of a gardener, but decided it would be fun to put a little garden log in my BuJo. The snowdrops should be the first real entry...

I’m finishing law school this semester—hooray! This has been a heckuva journey, made even crazier by the pandemic and going on three semesters of fully virtual learning. But I’m mostly dead done! And finishing law school can only mean one thing: the bar exam. Not looking forward to that. But, I am going to take advantage of the timing to embark on a six-month mini-epic quest, which I’m calling... The Bar and the Bellwether Not because I’ll use any actual barbells at any point. I’ve made it 33 years without picking one up, so why start now??? No, it’s “The Bar and the Bellwether” because, well, the bar exam. And I know that once I’m out of law school and back in the professional world, I’ll have a lot less control over my schedule and a lot less time and mental capital to tackle health and fitness related challenges. So I want to build up habits in the next few months that can lend some automaticity to my life as a positive sign of things to come. Hence the bellwether. And for this epic-ish quest, I’m going cross-guild. I'll always be a Scout at heart, but I want to diversify a bit. Here's what I'm planning: Scout Goal (Running): Log 270 miles before the bar exam Assassin Goal (Pull-Ups): Be able to do a damn pull up before the bar exam Druid Goal (Mindfulness): Improve my attention, focus, and mindful presence in my everyday life through meditation and reducing distraction. I might incorporate some other things along the way, but these are the main points. Here’s what it means this go-round: Challenge One: Running To stay on track, I need to log 42 miles between now and the end of the challenge. That’s a bit more than a mile a day. No goals as to the number of times I run per week, but I’m going to use 3 miles thrice a week as a general guide. Challenge Two: Pull-Ups Doing actual pull-ups is not in the cards yet, so I’m going to stick with my current strength training. At least 3 workout bodyweight per week. I’m almost done with the level 3 bodyweight workout on NF Prime. Once I’m done I’ll re-baseline to see if I ought to repeat it (maybe using harder variations) or move onto level 4. Regardless of the outcome, I’ll follow the daily schedule on NF Prime Challenge Three: Mindfulness I had started down the mindfulness/meditation journey last year, helped along by Sam Harris and the Waking Up app. I lost some serious steam over the holidays, and want to bring it back. Alongside engaging in mindfulness practice, I want to reduce the things that pull me away from being mindfully present, especially my phone. Last challenge, I (mostly) kicked my Twitter habit. This challenge, I’m targeting my phone time more generally. This is a two parter, with progressively ambitious goals per week for part two: Phone, Go to Sleep: Reduce average screen time by 10% each week. I'll take a one-week average starting on day one of the challenge for my baseline. Mind, Wake Up: Week 1: Five 10-minute guided meditation sessions (with the Waking Up app) Week 2: Seven 10-minute guided meditation sessions Week 3: Six 10-minute guided meditation sessions and one 20-minute guided meditation sessions Week 4: Five 10-minute guided meditation sessions and two 20-minute guided meditation session Week 5: Four 10-minute guided meditation sessions, two 20-minute guided meditation sessions, and one 10-minute independent meditation session

Back for more of the same Fast Travel Get faster, get stronger, do something every day, no exceptions Craft Squirrel Stew Eat Paleoish, no booze Protect the Commmmmmonwealth Continue with the daily meditations following on from last time (summary here) and see where it takes me You Feel Well Rested Morning Routine starting at 5 (get to bed early) good posture, language work (Duolingo +one other thing) and cross one item off the to do list per day.

Or will I? Stay tuned to find out.... I have been playing a LOT of the Elder Scrolls recently. I started out with Skyrim and then when I started running out of new character ideas, I decided to go back in the franchise to Morrowind, the 3rd installment. In that game [SPOILER ALERT] you play the famed hero of prophecy, the Nerevarine. I am going to base my challenge around that, as I expect much of my time this challenge will involve this game Endurance: In the game I have found that my biggest limiting factor is endurance. I can only run for a minute or two before I am completely drained, and when you are drained you can't do anything and are easily killed. My real live endurance is not much better, so in order to build up my endurance, I am going to be doing some running. I expect most of this will be on my treadmill, but with the temperatures starting to get nice outside, I may also do some running at the park. My minimum for success is 50Km over the course of the challenge. That comes out to two 5k runs per week, which is totally doable. Agility: Agility is the attribute that keeps the enemies from being able to hit you. For this challenge this is going to translate into stretching and mobility work, which will keep me from taking damage (getting injured) as I go about my questing. Last challenge I tried to make this an evening thing but that did not work at all. This time around I am going to try doing it in the mornings and see if that works any better. Goal is to to at east 3 stretching sessions per week, meaning 15 sessions over the course of the challenge. My 4 primary stretches focus on pike (posterior chain), straddle (hips), tuck (ankles), and pancake (hips and posterior chain). Personality: Personality is another key attribute in the game, because often in order to complete any quest you have to interact with the NPCs, who won't do anything for you unless you have rapport with them. A high personality score means less time running around doing tasks to build up rapport with NPCs so you can complete quests. For this challenge, that means keeping up with other people here on NF. Last time I tried to follow too many people and ended up getting WAY behind on all of them to the point where I was barely participating in any of them. This time I am going to somehow limit the number of challenges I follow so I can stay up to date and active. The hard part is deciding who to follow and who I have to skip this time around. I need to be active in 10 other people's threads and keep my follows under 20 people (somehow). Not sure yet how to track this one. Willpower: This attribute affect spell casting success rate and for me (since I am not playing a spellcaster) resistance to magicka. This is important because getting hit with a paralyze spell in the middle of combat can be fatal. For this challenge this is going to be about snacking. I usually do pretty well on eating healthy during the day. However, I tend to get the munchies in the evening and I inevitably go hunting for whatever is around the house. Given that the Chinese New Year holiday starts this week, there is going to be tons of snacks around. I am going to give myself a pass during the holiday, but once the holiday is over I am going to steal an idea from Deffy and have a snack pack. Anything in the snack pack is OK, but that is the limit. Once that is gone I can't have any more snacks. I will try to have my snack pack ready each morning, but if I fail to do that, it just means I can't have snacks. Goal for this challenge is to have no more than 5 snack pack violations over the course of the challenge. Strength: I almost left this off because it is something I would be doing anyway, but decided to include it anyway. Strength is the attribute that determines how much damage output you do, but increased strength also correlates with increased weapon degradation. Improving strength is good, as long as it is tempered and I don't try to overdo things. I have lost a bit of strength over the winter from being indoors so much, so I need to be patient and not try to do too much too quickly. Goals for this challenge is 3 workouts per week (15 total workout sessions for the challenge), but they don't have to be focused on anything beyond just getting outside and being active. Challenge Tracker: Endurance: ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ Agility: ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ Personality: Willpower: ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ Strength: ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜

Hail, fellow members of the Rebellion! This is my second challenge. The first was eye-opening. Small changes, consistently applied, supported by this community -- I actually shifted the needle on some habits that just hadn’t moved for years. That felt . . . amazing. I actually started traveling down a road to better health that I haven't been able to start for YEARS. So, now I aim to maintain the habits I’ve built, and tweak a few more, walking further down the path I've started. So - goals for this stage of the journey: 
 Maintaining momentum - One big set of goals is just about maintaining the good habits I’ve got going. These include the following activities that I've gotten down pretty consistently. Nutrition: - Weekly meal prep
 - Intermittent (16/8) fasting
 Exercise: - Running or biking 5-6 days a week
 - Trail running most Saturdays
 - Strength training at least 2x / week
 Community support: - Engaging in the NF forums twice a week
 - Checking into the app and Discord community daily
 
 Add some new habits Nutrition : Avoid unplanned snacking
 Exercise: Add one more strength training workout - so 3x/week
 Sleep: Go to bed by 11
 (Ack! So hard for this night owl! But critical for getting in morning workouts.) Mind: Stay completely away from your Internet Kryptonite. 
(I have one online site that just sucks me in if I go anywhere near it. I can’t take a moderate approach. I just have to cut it out entirely. That’s been hard for me, but I’m going to try to hold myself accountable here.) 

 For me, this year is the Year of Health. After years of attempting a rather frantic form of working motherhood in jobs that left me feeling wrung out, I am trying to put my own health and well being back on the table. Part of that is the body and nutrition work. Part of it is about getting out of work that isn’t sustainable for me, and executing a significant career pivot - one that requires skilling up in some new areas, possibly by going back to school. All of that is to say -- I’m trying to build a more healthy, sustainable future for myself. But there are multiple moving parts to this change, and I know it will all take time. It's going to be a long road. Looking forward to journeying this challenge with all of you! And hope everyone’s surviving the Ice/Snow/Coldpocalypse.

During the last challenge I noticed that I crammed all the reps towards the weekend. I was doing multiple 10km+ rucks back to back which I noticed took a toll on my feet health once Monday came around. Just as well on the weekends I was pushing out 150+ pushups per day. Thus this challenge is all about doing the absolute minimum every single day! Everyday the goal is to achieve: 1 pull-up ( I don't have a pull-up bar, so get to look for one of those out in public) 10 push-ups 10 ab exercises, ideally dead hang knee raise, but sit-ups/leg raises also work 10 air squats 60 seconds squat holds, it is harder than perceived 1 mile ruck, which fits well with finding a place to do a pull-up For each failed exercise, 5 times the amount needs to be done as a payout. Not getting the ruck miles in nor the pull-ups will probably be the harder achievements, because I physically have to leave the house. In worst case I will have to 30 ruck miles and 30 pull-ups on Sundays. As a secondary goal: at least achieve 25 ruck clicks ideally 50 ruck clicks *1 click = 1km Starting with the challenge on 8. Feb, 2021.

The last challenge has helped me to be consistent and accountable. I want to continue to build on these gains and improve other things that are not going well. The goals for this challenge: 1. Neck Stretches/Shoulder Mobility - In the last challenge, I have the exercises in my daily plan but I fail to do it. I tried doing it after I wake up or before going to bed but could never consistently do it. I need to improve on this. So, the plan is to do these exercises during the Daily Stand-up call at 10am. 2. Minimalism - Simplify. Try something every week along the concept of Use It Up, Wear It Out, Make It Do, or Do Without. 3. Run/Walk - I've managed to make this consistent to the point that it feels effortless. Continue with the Monday to Thursday run/walk and Friday/Saturday/Sunday grocery run/walk. Listen to the Holy Bible audiobook on these run/walk. 4. Meal Plan/Tracking/Symptom Tracking In My Journal - Using a digital OneNote journal has become almost like a habit from the last challenge. I will continue to use this tool not just to plan my meals/food intake but also track the time/description of symptoms, then I can start to figure out some of cause of my allergies, inflammation and pain.

My health journey starts with the basics: Duolingo Reading Exercises Healthy snacks Shaw academy Bullet Journaling

nothing fancy - lets do the work quest 1 - double digits distance didn't make it last time around - going to keep pushing. quest 2 - body weight work eh - no luck on this last time, so let's keep it simple - 5 pushups, 5 sit ups, and 5 squats per trip to the bathroom - excluding morning shower quest 3 - limit booze nightly drinking has gotten out of hand - need to scale it back a max of 1 drink per week night. quest 4 - weekly (virtual) social interaction 1 chat a week - this could be my D&D or ICRPG game

I have been working on training for a century. Will it happen? Who knows. Covid cases are higher than when they postponed it. I'll continue as if it will happen. Cycling twice a week PT at least twice a week preferably 3-4 Eat more protein I have started working on hill work some. Last Saturday I found a great place to ride not too far from my house and it is quite pretty. The only issue is for short workouts I need to figure out a way to warm up. I might just do an out an back on the road adjacent, but it feels silly. But the incline is more than anything on the century and I think is a good training hill. I stopped 3-4 times on my completion. Not great, but it had been many years since I drove it in my car so I wasn't sure how to pace it on a bike. I'm eager to try it again soon. Side Quest: I have been doing a Bike vs Car side quest. The current score is Bike 1: car 2 I might as well continue it. This side quest goes by calendar month and for once is almost entirely inside one challenge. Miles on the bike are compared to miles in my car.

Fellow voyagers - I come to vanquish a likely common foe, the "post dinner snack monster". I'm generally able to stick to the training program that will will allow me to progress towards my goals, until the post dinner downtime rolls in and I pillage the snack pantry far too regularly. This is likely (a) due to undereating throughout the day and (b) emotional eating (boredom & frustrating being the two key ones) - my quest will have two main objectives: Eat sufficiently throughout the day to be satiated after dinner (given my size & activity levels that's ~160g protein and ~340 - 400g carbs) as opposed to "rabbit eating" throughout my standard meals Immediate summon my (tooth)brush of valor post dinner and create a moat around my poor nightly eating patterns. Given the damage I can do in these nightly binges I am challenging myself to do this consistently for the next 30 days, and I will allow myself one slip up in this journey. To battle I go!

I'm working towards a back handspring (BHS). I secretly made a training schedule in the last challenge to help me keep track of stuff. I've started calling it "za menu", so I can ask myself "What's on za menu?". I'm doing a PPL routine, along with core, physio, parkour, and running. I'm going to start tracking sets and reps for vertical pushing. And I'll start tracking sets and reps for horizontal pulling and shoulder physio. And I'll start adding a mental component to each parkour session. And I'll start adding barbell glute bridges and goblet side squats to my leg routine. And I'll start working on improving my shoulder extension for ring dips. And I'll start working on the transition for a ring muscle up. And I'll start working on support holds on the rings (rings turned out). And I'll start adding a tiny bit more distance to my runs. And I'll start watching a video (2 max) of The Ready State/Mobility WOD every day and take notes (except Tuesday). And I'm going to finish reading a book by the end of the challenge. And I think that's all. Main quests - Maintain strength/flexibility in non-BHS related areas. I want to be able to do a BHS AND all the stuff I can currently do, not either/or. - Work on things that will eventually lead to a BHS. My current options for progressions include rail walkovers, suicide kip ups, and macacos. Side quests - Work on things that will eventually lead to a ring muscle up. - Read Trigger Point Therapy Made Simple: 7 pages a day should do it Background quests (solid habits) - Run 2X a week: increase the distance of one run a tiny bit every 2 weeks, while keeping the other run constant

At some point I'll hopefully flesh this challenge out a bit more, but for now I just want to get something down. Hi, for those who don't know me I'm Jarric. I'm a 30something ranger from England, and I've been knocking around the forums since February 2016 apparently. I live with my fiancée, Wonder Woman (usually referred to as WW), and out cat Bagheera. My main fitness goals revolve around obstacle course racing (OCR) and bouldering (rock climbing without ropes). I've spent a lot of the last couple of years going to a Crossfit gym as well, although that's on hold for a couple of months for financial reasons, as I'm hoping to buy a house in the next few weeks. My nerdyness is largely directed towards TTRPGs these days; I started a long D&D campaign with some fellow rangers this year, I play in a couple of different Pathfinder groups each week, and I spend a not insignificant amount of time watching High Rollers, Critical Role, Questing Time, and Acq Inc: The C Team. The uncommonly good-looking half orc in my profile pic is Guglug the muscle wizard. He's been my avatar for the last few challenges, and if I get round to doing a theme this time he'll probably be involved. * * * Last year was a good year. No really, I mean that. Bad stuff happened in 2020 and I can't change that, but I can choose what I remember 2020 for and I choose to remember the good stuff: I started running a regular D&D campaign, and have had amazing fun doing it I achieved one of my major fitness goals, running 4 laps of The Nuts Challenge I managed multiple reps of ring muscle ups, learned to handstand walk a couple of steps, and got much better at handstands in general I was introduced to Questing Time, a brilliant comedy D&D show, and joined an amazing community of geeks through that I got a pay rise and a bonus, in a year that I wasn't expecting either I saved so much money by not going out over the summer that I'm somehow in a position to buy a house. WW and I found a place we love and got a mortgage approved * * * For this year I have some more big goals (which you can find in my 2021 road map), but for now lets focus on goals for this challenge: Run 116 miles - 10XP Simple one, run 116 miles this challenge. My goal for the year is 1,202 miles (2021 backwards), so 116 miles in this 5 week challenge is on track for that. Will be simple if I don't miss any runs. Foam rolling - 10XP Do some foam rolling at least 3 times per week. I am in considerably less pain when I do this regularly, and I like not being in pain, so I need to knuckle down and do it. Protein - 10XP Drink my protein shakes every day. I've yet to find a way to get sufficient protein without them (and without eating a million calories), so these need to be had. Teeth - 5XP Brush my teeth twice daily, and clean in between them in the evenings. Because apparently I'm a trash person and can't get to grips with this. Because I have a real mental block about this. I don't know where it comes from, or why, but when I get stressed or depressed I fall out of the habit very quickly. Create - 5XP Draw something, or do something else creative, at least 3 times each week. I think this is good for me mentally, and I enjoy it, and I want to get better at drawing because I enjoy it more when I'm improving. * * * Icebreaker It feels like a time when a lot of people are coming back to the forums, and with mixing the guilds I'm seeing more of different people, so lets get to know each other a bit more. So tell me, what incredibly common thing have you never done?

I started some challenges in early 2020 and that just got derailed when the pandemic happened. And life just passed by literally. Hoping to be more mindful and actually get something done, I am doing this challenge following Zipf's Law - Principle of Least Effort. According to Wikipedia: "The principle of least effort postulates that animals, people, and even well-designed machines will naturally choose the path of least resistance or effort". Keep things easy so you set yourself up for success. 1. Run/Walk - 3x a week. Last year, my total mileage was 557.4 miles, mostly walking. 2. Journal - Write daily, either using the 5-minute Journal or morning pages method to plan the day. Write gratitude list. 3. Meditate - 3x a week in one form or another. This is probably the hardest of all the goals. I've been trying different ones but just not getting traction. 4. Neck Mobility/Shoulder Mobility Exercises - Been having neck and shoulder pain. I have the exercises listed. 'Just need to do them. 5. Read - Daily in audiobook or in print.

OK, this is going to be a hard one because my project will be coming to an end in February so I'll be busy AF, but here's the plan: Oh hang on, let's do a Fallout 4 Theme because it's our game of choice at the moment at home. My Challenge... My Challenge Never Changes Since I'm over 200 years old*, I need to take care of myself. What will make me even more S.P.E.C.I.A.L** than I already am? Well, sticking to what works, of course. Oh and adding some new things to make it interesting too. 1. Strength/Endurance - move every day, including one long run per week, at least two short runs and _something_ on every day of every week. This has been working well for me, so I'm keeping it up. Got to outrun those mirelurks 2. Charisma/Agility - eat sensibly. I tend to be a bit slack around Christmas and New year so week 0 will probably be a bit rubbish but after that, paleoish, with added oaty breakfast. No cannibal perk (we scouts have our standards, unlike some I could mention) no booze and no eating unopened packs of Cram I find in a dustbin behind a raider encampment. 3. Perception/Luck - I'm going to try and take care of myself more, building on last challenge's don't-ruin-your-spine theme, I'm going to keep doing that, stand up straighter and - I can hardly believe I'm writing this - try some meditation. It's hard to explain how not-in-character this is for me, but you know, just like occasionally trying foods you don't like, or poetry, sometimes you have to try things you're written off, just to see if something about you has changed in a way that makes it make sense now. Er... If you see what I mean. I've heard a few people (notably Sam Harris) talk about it in ways that didn't make me cringe recently, and the final impetus came from @sarakingdom's revelation that I could do meditation in the time it takes the kettle to boil***. OK, that's the kind of commitment level I'm capable of. Sign me up! 4. Intelligence - follow my daily schedule of Duolingo dilettantism, more serious Portuguese study, etc., and staying on top of my to-do list. *=In reality, I'm not quite as old as the Sole Survivor, but pretty close **=if you're not familiar with the game these are the basic in-game abilities you start with: Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility and Luck, ***=disclaimer, this isn't a very accurate description - you can read what she actually said (here) if you want to know more.

Got a new fancy bio-metric scale and boy was the number higher than I optimistically hoped, back into obesity by 15 pounds. So weight loss is my main priority again. Last year the icing on top of a four year slide from healthy back down into obesity. I have come out before and I will do it again. Also keep my running streak through the winter (at 212 days as of Jan 5). For the last 3 months though I have done a number of single mile runs to keep the streak alive (after a long bike ride I scaled back due to weird muscle ache and my son had open heart surgery so was a crazy last few weeks). I want to go back to 3 mile for my base now that the reasons for the shorter runs is out of the way so goal of 21 miles a week. Goals 1) Use the fancy scale every day 2) Log all calories 3) Eat at least 6 servings of vegetables a day 4) Run every day 5) Run 21 miles a week

Last we left Red1263, he resumed his training under Orthos. During his time under the pollen of the Mendacium flower, he discovered that he was missing a part of himself. He once strove to complete the crystal shard that he still possesses, but that journey had been left unfulfilled due to the random direction Life had taken him... "OI! Get back to work!" Orthos bellowed. "Time is starting to run out! And you're nowhere near ready for the test!" Red1263 looked puzzled. "Test? What test? You mean this isn't the test?!" "Of course not, boy!" Orthos gaffaws. "I just needed someone to clean up around here, and you just happened to show up!" "Now, now, don't get your chainmail all bunched up! The real test is actually 3 parts and each part is more difficult than the last. But you'll be in Pros' trail by then. So you still have time. But you'll fail unless you don't pick up the pace!" Frustrated, Red1263 yelled back, "What are you talking about? Who's Pros? And if this isn't preparing me for the test, then why am I doing this? Why are you wasting my time!?" Upon hearing this Orthos got unusually quiet. "Do you think you are 'wasting your time' here, boy?" Red1263 was taken aback by this question, "I-- well-- No--" Orthos, with the same solemn tone continued, "Every experience, whether good or bad, is just that: Experience. You have no idea what lessons are being learned without your knowing, and what will help you in your journey in the future. Stop rushing recklessly into the future and focus on where you are now. Be present and you will see that all of this is meant to help you grow." Red1263 stood there, surprized at the sudden wisdom coming from Orthos (whom at this point, Red1263 thought was drunk this whole time). "I... I... I'm sorry. You're right. I've been a Jerk and--" "Oh psshhhh! Don't look so surprized! I meant what I said. But you can either stand there and waste time being a jerk, OR you can continue to hustle and move forward. So what'll it be?" Red1263, smiled and let out a defeated chuckle, "Heh heh, Move forward." So this year, I'm going to dedicate the following challenges to checking things off a list that I've always wanted to. The items are in no order, nor do they really relate to each other, but I'll probably build a challenge theme around them (who am I kidding? Of course I will ). So for now, my goals for this challenge is the following: Continue the routine I made from the last challenge Spend 30 mins studying/Reading Orthotics 4 times a week Get to bed at 11pm every night As for that list, here it is in no particular order: Build my brother a Destiny 2 Lamp Learn how to do a Handstand Play 1 song on the acoustic guitar Clean up the Christmas Decorations and finish setting up my apartment (hang things up, plus some other few things that need to be organized) Re-introduce Pull-ups into my routine Build a shelving unit next to my Desk

After a frustrating almost five years of decreasing weekly running mileage, increasing weight and cholesterol levels, and worsening nutrition, I am trying for some habit transformation in 2021. This involves some big things (changing my professional trajectory), and lots of smaller things (adjusting eating and exercise habits in relatively small but significant ways). I used to be a long-distance runner, and it has been hard to let go of the part of my brain that says that if I just up my mileage enough, my weight will take care of itself. As a full-time working (and now middle-aged) mom who has had to work a LOT of overtime during COVID and who also is home every day with a stocked kitchen, all of my constraints and challenges are different than they used to be. I am completely new to the Nerd Fitness community, and an internet-shy introvert, so this isn't comfortable for me. But I'm here because I really need some accountability and social support around these changes, and I want to give this kind of community a try! So . . . . here goes! Goal 1: Reduce snacking - nutrition I would like to eliminate snacking entirely, but I've tried that and completely failed. So (gets up, dusts self off, looks about, starts down road again ) - my new more realistic self is aiming to eliminate snacking after dinner and *limit* snacking in the afternoon to my mid-afternoon snack. Also, since my partner and child are going to continue enjoying all of their snacks, I am creating a separate snack shelf for myself in the kitchen. If I can avoid theirs altogether, perhaps I'll be less tempted by their snacks? Goal 2: Weekly meal prep - nutrition I've tried meal plans, and they rarely work because my family won't eat them, and we don't have time to cook separate meals for everyone. So, what's worked best is to prep 3 recipes on the weekend just for me, each with at least 5 servings, to cover weekdays: a) steel-cut oats for breakfasts; b) a vegetarian lunch; and c) something healthy I can eat for dinner each evening. I am successful at doing this about 40-50% of the time. Then, we make whatever the family wants for dinner, and I pull out my pre-prepped meal and microwave it for just me. My goal is to aim for 80% of the time getting meal prep done - or at least 4 of the 5 weeks of the challenge. Goal 3: Strength training 2x/week - fitness I have been sporadically adding a very simple and short (15-min) NF bodyweight circuit to my weekly exercise, but I'm terrible about getting it in consistently, though I'm able to run or walk almost every day. I'd like to try to get it in twice a week. Later I can work on adding more exercises and circuits, but right now I'm focused on the habit building piece of just fitting this in weekly. Goal 4: Explore some of the NF yoga workouts - flexibility I have never been good about stretching or flexibility work, but at 47, I need it. In addition to consistently stretching after runs and walks, I want to at least spend some time trying out a few of the NF yoga workouts to see if there's one I could do on a regular basis. I'll meet this goal if I try at least 2 of the yoga video classes here. Goal 5: Check in daily with the NF Journey app - habit-building, mindset I don't know if this will help, but the goal here is to keep my health and fitness goals front and center in my brain, in spite of having to work overtime, remote school an elementary-aged child, and all the other things going on in our lives. Letting exercise and nutrition activities get pushed away during busy times has been a big source of my slippage, and so the goal here is just to remember that this is a PRIORITY for me. Looking forward to getting to know some of you better here! And, of course, leveling up my superhero self.

2020 was such a lazy year only achieved 1000 ruck kilometers which is 600 ruck kilometers less than the year before. This year I have the goal to achieve 2021 ruck kilometers, which equates to about 40 ruck kilometers per week. Thus the goals for this challenge with be combined with a recent post I came across on Instagram, that deals with saving dogs from the meat market in China and flying them to the UK. The post talks about the number 505, thus all goals will deal with that number as well. Goal 1: move 505 kg of dead weight in a kilometer per week Dead Weight is anything you put in a ruck that has no further purpose than being weight. Currently I ruck with 30# = 13.6 kg Moving 505 kg within a kilometer means that one has to ruck so much until it equates of moving the weight within one kilometer. Thus either you can put more weight in and ruck less or less weight and more distance. This equates to 37.1 km/week which fits perfect within 2021 km yearly goal. Goal 2: 505 push-ups per week With using the Greasing the Groove technique I am slowly building up my push-up max. Currently at 34 PR. Goal is to achieve at least 55 push-ups within 2min within this year. Since this is one of the requirements for the GORUCK Selection. Updates: