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MAIN QUEST: Reconstruction: I have successfully torn down the ragged, bloated body I sported 6 months ago. I've become a svelter (I love that word!) more streamlined version of myself before, with an ability to run around 4 times further than I've ever done before. What I have not gained back yet is my former definition and horsepower. So, now that I've lost the weight and restored the frame, it's time to work on the body, while still keeping my cardio in check to run the Super Spartan in Wintergreen, VA on August 24th. Three goals: I want my Six Pack back. While I'm concerned that my second venture in to the big fat giant fat-ass world of 220lbs+ might have left a little skin around my mid section that may never completely flatten out, I'm going to do everything in my power to smite it in a fashion most biblical. My body fat caliper disappeared in the move and I've got one in the mail so as soon as that arrive I'll update this goal with fat percentage goals I want my Strength back. In training for Tough Mudder (June 14th) I've been focusing on weight loss and cardio / endurance, and have only trained strength tangentially. So, I want to be able to move heavy things again and strike fear into the hearts of my enemies (if I ever get any enemies anyway. Who doesn't like me? I'm friggen charming as hell!). I can't think of a better test than the wonderfully cliche bench press, so by the end of this six weeks (five technically since I'll be taking a week or so off when I finish my tattoo) I intend to be able to bench 225, not quite 1.5 times my current body weight. I want some size, period. I've always either been the skinny kid, and more recently the tubby fat kid. While I've slimmed down, I'd like to have some man-bulk. To that end, while maintaining the (TBA) body fat percentage I want to get my weight up from my current 178lb to between 185 - 190lbs of raw manliness. Don't go getting all excited on me. SIDE QUESTS:Life Side Quest: Time to re-learn management of both people and time. I've learned recently that it's almost 100% certain I'm getting the job I've been begging and screaming to get a foot in the door into. Why? Well they pay a butt-ton of money, and I'm a firm believer while money cannot buy happiness the rental program is friggen amazing. To this end I need to re-read my old management documents and books, as well as work on a personally destructive habit of silently putting off issues and conflicts and dealing with them quickly and openly. Fitness Side Quest: I'd like to work directly on increasing size in my forearms. I've always been self conscious about my skinny stick boy arms. I've been able in the past to bulk up my bicepts and tricepts, but never as much the forearms, no matter how cut I can get them. I'd like to fix that. MOTIVATION: I actually have this hanging on a post-it note in my current office: Never look like / feel about myself the way I did when I was the aforementioned tub of lard.Live to my (supposedly) fairly impressive potential^---- Do that through being accountable to myself, no matter how effective my current... outside motivating force is at the momentWin back the respect, and maybe one day love, I lost from someone most dear to me. challenge 1 can be found at: http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/46808-new-challenge-the-istrix-will-rise-like-the-cyber-phoenix-inked-into-my-back-and-burn-some-stuff/

Hey, y'all - Is anyone out there planning on running the upcoming Spartan Sprint race (3+ miles, 15+ obstacles) in Temecula, CA on 09/14? I signed up for the (8:30 A.M. and 8:45 A.M.) confirmed start time. Even if you aren't doing the race in my location, if you have a similar race date, maybe we could buddy up and share training tips/be battle log buddies? - Quinn aka RedPuma

On my last challenge, I feel like a fell down on two of my goals because ultimately I was spreading myself too thin and not really focusing on what I really wanted to achieve in the long term. Whilst I will return to handstands at some point, I've decided to go back to basics with this challenge and really strip everything down. In essence, I'm going SPARTAN! It's going to be very simple: Diet Exercise Sleep. The agoge was the spartans training super harsh training regime. Whilst I'm not going to be putting myself through anything as crazy as some of their training techniques, I feel inspired to spend the next 6 weeks working on the very fundamentals of healthy living and cultivating discipline. My goals therefore are: Goal 1: More pull-ups. Last challenge I went from 4 to 7 using the 20 pull-ups programme. Whilst I never completed it as I repeated each of the first three weeks, I'm taking another stab at it. If I can add 3 to my personal record last time, I should be able to make it to at least 10 over the next 6 weeks. 10 full pull-ups in a single set by the end of the challenge is my target. STR+4 Goal 2: Healthy diet Previously I've done quite well in reducing my % body fat by being stricter with my diet so I'm going for this again. Sticking with the back to basics theme, I'm going to (or at least attempt to) cut out all junk food, unnecessary sugar and alcohol. I'm also going to try to stick to strict times throughout the day for eating too so I'll be less inclined to graze on whatever crap is lying around. I'm also going to keep more detailed body measurements too and hopefully use the body fat measuring techniques laid out in Waldo's Strength Unbound blog to see if I can get some more accurate measurements of my body composition. Everyday that I eat well, will be a day of success. Everyday that I don't will go down as failure. CON +4 Goal 3: Sleep I won't go into why sleep is great for your physical constitution here as others have said it better than I could but it is an essential component of creating a healthy body. Ideally I would like to be in bed by 10 every night but my attempts so far have not even been close. Therefore my goal will be lights out by 10.30 every night. STA +3 Goal 4: Team work. One of the reasons the Spartans were so effective as a military force was because so much emphasis was placed on working as a unit rather than as individuals. As they spent all of their time together, supporting and encouraging each other, they functioned as a whole and were stronger for it. I feel a lot of my success so far has been down to the support of the amazing people in the Rebellion and I want to repay that in kind. I'm going to put myself forward to be an ambassador for the assassins so that I can cheer along potential recruits but I'm also going to make every effort to show support for anyone else who wants and needs it. As well as subscribing to challenges of people who look like they have similar goals to mine, I resolve to actively support anyone who follows my challenge, anyone who asks me to follow them, and anyone who is recommended to me by someone else, regardless of their goals or guild. I can't guarantee that I will post something on everyone's thread every single day, and I'm going to prioritise those that look like they need more support than others, but I shall try my best to support everyone that I can.

Hey all, I am back for challenge #7! I ended up bailing on last challenge. During that "off" time I started to think up my own 14 day challenges. I created a new Battle log: Tateman's daily 14 day challenge log The premise behind this is to get me more motivated to focus on my exercise. Similar to the Whole 30 idea of "hey, it's only 30 days, you can do that" For me, thinking "Hey, it's only 14 days. I can do that" Of course, then I just continue the cycle So motivation wise, I am still in the I want to lose weight group. Plus get stronger, better, faster! I am going to run another Spartan race. I was going to do Malibu again, but this year Spartan Race is coming to San Francisco. So I will run that one instead. This is a part of their stadium series. AT&T Park Spartan Sprint, August 9th, 2014. I watched the Fenway park sprint, and there wasn't any mud, but there was lots of burpees, and running, and plenty of other things to kick you butt. So I am scared and excited about it. I will sign up this weekend. I already have a few people wanting to team up potentially, so I might not have to do it all by myself. I also am bowling in the 2014 USBC Open Championships in Reno, NV on May 17th and 18th. So that happens this challenge! I really want to give the Shock and Awe to my teammates that haven't seen me in a year or more. More motivation is I want to get off my diabetes medication. Ever since I was put on it, it was a goal to get off it. I was heading in the right direction, but have faulted a bit. I'll be getting my bloodwork done soon, so I can see where my progress is. My Doctor had said in the past that when I get close to 250 lbs, We can possibly talk about lowering it down. So I NEED to get there. So here are the goals: 1) Fitness! Burpees, running, and gym visits! So here is my 14 day self challenges. I already started them, so I am just continuing into this challenge. Here is the spreadsheet I made to track this. Basically this: I haven't been 100% on it yet, but am building up. Also Day 1 of stairs plus burpees was murder. I might not ramp up as fast as I first lined up here. Going to try though before changing it. Since last challenge I failed on getting Stronglifts started, I hope this challenge I can at least get regular gym visits going. Even if it is only treadmill work. I hope it will start getting me more use to going to the gym. Maybe I will even do a few machine weights just to get more motivativated. The 14th day of each challenge is my Evaluation day. That day I test to see if I have improved in a few basic tests. Eventually, the evaluation days will change to other fitness tests, but for now it is How many Burpees can I do in one minute? How long does it take me to finish 1.2 mile? and How long does it take to finish 1 mile. Once I am able to actually run the 1/2 mile and 1 mile marks, then I'll see if I can get faster at them. Doing C25K should get me there eventually. When the challenge starts, I will be on day 8 of my 14 day challenge. 2) We must have rest! Ok, so I just decided on this one today. I have had sleep goals before. I just keep staying up later and later. With all my exercise, I need to have rest. So I will get back to my hard limit of midnight. No more 2am, or 3am sleep. From the past I know I might not fall asleep right away, but I got to get to bed by midnight. Eventually, I will start getting use to it, and fall asleep faster. 3) Eat well, and stick with IF So I was going to get back on the Whole 30 eating train again, but I honestly feel like I have to move past this. It's fine to go back on it from time to time I think. I just don't believe for me that it is a permanent way to eat. Having said that, my overall goal is to maintain a Whole30/Primal/Paleo eating style. I know from the past whole 30s I have done that Dairy isn't a problem for me, and corn has been fine too. So I plan on having popcorn (popped in coconut oil and not butter) as a snack. For me this is better then having trail mixes or nuts, because I can eat those up so fast. I think I will allow myself one meal a week if needed that might be outside this. I am getting back into the Intermittent Fasting as well. It worked great for me before to help my kick the snacking habit at night. 4) Be the bowler! So the practicing I was doing last challenge worked out pretty well. I have been on fire as of late it seems. So I hope to continue this. I want to at least have 3 games of practice each week. My wrist has been a little sore from one weekend were I did a lot of extra practice. So I want to make sure I don't over do it. I really, really, want to maintain my current bowling. I really want to do well at Nationals this year. 5) Document the Journey i didn't do so well last challenge with this. This time I want to do better. I want to make sure I get self pictures done each week at least. Plus, I want to try to do a daily video blog. It will be really boring. I hope to eventually have recordings of workouts, runs, and me just talking about the day. With all this stuff done, eventually I can look back and see just how much I have been changing. Maybe I can eventually make it my Weight loss video montage I'll be recording most video from my cell phone for now at least. I should have a tripod here soon to use. I also created a youtube account just for these videos https://www.youtube.com/user/willgetfit. Pictures I'll probably add to the usual places (Except shirtless ones will remain private for me haha) Beginning numbers! Weight - 281lbs (4-7-14) Challenge start weight: 277lbs (4-14-14 start date) This challenge I will be tracking my weight daily. I am curious to see how my body weight fluctuates. My pre-challenge evaluation numbers: Burpees in one minute: 8 1/2 Mile finished in 5 minutes 44 seconds 1 Mile finished in 12 minutes 14 seconds Weekly Summary Post: Week 1 Summary! Week 2 Summary!

Name: Hammlin “Hammi” Race: Wood Elf Class: Footpath Ranger Attributes: Strength (STR): 34 Dexterity (DEX): 32.25 Stamina (STA): 23 Constitution (CON): 26.5 Wisdom (WIS): 26.5 Charisma (CHA): 24.25 Level 15 Motivation: Focused, Relaxed, and Ready- Challenges are upon me, and it’s Go-Time. Hammi’s Main Quest: It Burns Hammi (Apr 14- May 25) Missions: 1. Train. I am in the Spartan 30 day boot camp (My Spartan Race is May 4th) and when that culminates we will move on to the GORUCK boot camp. I don’t have time to not be in training. Substitution with mountain hiking is ok once a week. 36-42 days = A 29-35 days = B 22-28 days = C 15-21 days = D 0-14 days = F Reward: (+2 STA +2 STR) 2. Water. In conjunction with the Women’s Academy water sleep goal, I’m focused again on my water. My Contigo water bottle is my measuring stick (each one holds 24oz) and I want to drink 4 per day. 4= 1pt, 3=.75pt, 2=.5pt, 1=.25pt. 36-42 points = A 29-35 points = B 22-28 points = C 15-21 points = D 0-14 points = F Reward: (+2 STA +2 WIS) 3. Joe. Ok this is a weird goal to lay out, but there is this trainer who offers a free training session every weekend at Red Rocks. When I go there for my rucks, I not only watch them (there are about 100 people who participate) but I ENVY them. My goal for this one is to work up the guts to try it out a few times. The group is called It Burns Joe Fitness (cause people yell out IT BURNS, JOE!) And I want to be one of them. I’m terrified to join, but they look like they are having fun while getting their asses kicked and I want that. 3 Joes = A 2 Joes = B 1 Joes = C DNF Joes = D 0 Joes = F Reward: (+2 DEX, +1 CON) Life Quest: 4. Blog. I need to be more active on my blog, if I want people to take me seriously. This one is straight forward. Goal is one blog per week- guest blogs count. 6 Blogs = A 5 Blogs = B 4 Blogs = C 3 Blogs = D 0-2 Blogs = F Reward: (+1 CON, +3 STR) TRACKING My Story (challenge history): 1. Wandering across the mountain ranges of the west, I came upon another wood elf, who was running through the tree lined forest. I tried to keep up, because I knew he was waiting for me, but nothing I did would keep me at pace with him. Eventually I slowed, to catch my breath and I lost him. Dejected and worn out, I decided to dedicate my life to keeping up with this other elf... 2. Sneaking through the woods I can feel my senses getting sharper and I begin to wonder if the elf that I'm following, is actually following me... 3. Catching my breath I slow my run as I approach a clearing. Did I get lost? I don't know where I am and the elf I had been following has picked up the pace. My mind... it's jumbled up... my thoughts are foggy... I need to focus. I'll stay here for a while, find my center, and then continue on... 4. After pausing in the clearing to refocus, I see what looks like a beaten down path off to my right. Have I been here before? Walking up to the path, it looks familiar, but overgrown. I take out my sword and slowly start hacking away the brush that seems to have grown in over the years. Yes. THIS is my path. 5. Following the path for what seems like a lifetime I suddenly find myself at the tree lined edge of a beautiful meadow. The sun in the sky that is glaring down on me makes me realize something glorious- I have made it through the woods! Over the hill I see the elf that I have been tracking this whole time. He is napping… This is my chance!!! 6. Running up to the elf that I have been following for what seems like forever, I find myself out of breath. As I slow down and approach him, I see him slow down and turn to me. I don't know if he knows that I have been following him, but I can tell by the look in his eye that he's ok with this. As we start to wander the forest together we notice that things aren't quite as bright and cheery as they were months ago... something is wrong... 7. As we continue to approach the edge of the forest we can feel something bearing down on us. Picking up the pace we stay laser focused on getting out of here. The night has grown darker and the forest is eerily quiet. The wood elf and I look at each other and begin to run. I can tell that the time where we have to battle is near and we really need to stay focused... 8. Standing on the front line, victorious, I wonder "Now what?" I ponder with wise words of a foreigner who taught my people to stay motivated when they feel like they have arrived. The skills I have learned in the past keep me pushing forward. I move confidently north, to find new lands. And that other pesky elf can come with me… 9. On the north side of the valley I see something far away that I can’t take my eyes off of. It almost looks like the mountain side is glistening and the sun is dancing with the peaks. I fall into a trance, staring off into the distance, as if I'm under a spell. A few minutes later I am able to snap out of it, but the lingering desire to see who, or what, had a hold on me begins to push me forward. Is some powerful mage up in the hills, drawing people to him? Or is someone sending out a distress signal, begging for help. All I know is the allure of finding out what is in those hills is forcing me onward. We have mountains like these back home, but I am far from that place, and out of practice. It will take some time to traverse these mighty giants, but I have no choice but to start… 10. From the top of the mountain I can see everything. I have a level of clarity that I've not experienced before and it makes me take notice to my surroundings. I have an epiphany and realize that I need to race home to my family. They have no idea what’s in store! As quickly as I can I need to make my way back down the hill and back to my village… Part of the way down the hill I trip. When I catch myself I see that the sign in front of me has directions. I’m tired of being a follower in my own life. I need to go my own way. I turn on my heels and walk south. 11. Down in the city to the south I find myself in the camp and company of strangers. Although I’m not entirely sure that I can trust them, they seem safe enough. Maybe, I’ll hang back and just observe them and mind their ways. Something inside of me says that these people have information that may be valuable to me and my quest, and I am determined to get my hands on it. Knowledge is oddly alluring and very appealing to my senses… 12. As I spend weeks on end with these people, I start to sense a power coming over me. I am being changed from the inside out- is it sorcery? Magic? Am I evolving? All I know is that I need to stay the course. Over time, my memories start to fade. The days of running through the wilderness with the other elves feel miles away- as if they occurred a lifetime ago. Only the here and now makes sense. I have my plan. 13. The strangers have become less strange and more like family. It feels like I have finally returned to a place where I feel at home and at peace. When I look down I start to notice that my slender Elven legs have begun to take a form of something more resembling tree trunks. When I stand, I can't move quite as nimbly but I feel stronger than I ever was before. In the back of my mind I still remember that I am following something- the dragon... 14. As I wake with a start I feel strange. My heart is pounding out of my chest, and I can’t seem to calm myself down. I am in no condition to face the dragon. I need peace. 15. Relaxed and recharged I pull out my map. I haven’t looked at it in quite some time and it’s almost foreign to me. Over my shoulder I see that elf that I had chased so long. He’s back and there is a stranger comfort in knowing that. I turn back to the map and start down the trail. There is a point in the road where it splits off into three. I see on the map that all three get where I need to go, but one seems most logical. I start down that path… I must find the thing that haunts me. I run until I can't feel my legs and I burn all over.

Hello! I’ve been over at the NF Women’s Academy since October (Yay beta group!) and have decided to come over here and complete a challenge. It will be a challenge in itself keeping up with my battle log over there and the challenge over here but I know it will be worth it. I have started most of these goals at the beginning of March so it will just be a matter of becoming more disciplined with completing them. I am going to have three main quests over the next 5 ½ months. · Conquer the Fort Mud Run (July 12) · CAMP NERD FITNESS!!!!!!! (Sept 18) · Super Spartan Race (Sept 26) · Move to New Zealand (Oct 1) YES!!! For this challenge (and next challenge) I will be focusing on the Conquer the Fort Mud Run. Preparing for this race will tie in to preparing for the Super Spartan. As for the third quest, I will be working on it in the background for this challenge and slowly bringing it to the forefront as the months pass. So back to Preparing To Conquer The Fort! Mission 1: Get Stronger. · Weight train 4x per week · Finish Academy Barbell Battalion levels 1&2 and start level 3 · M/W/F/Sa · Each workout completed has a $1 reward! I have a super duper workout/life journal that I created and it has basically every day planned for the next 5 ½ months. I workout in the mornings, M/W/F at 6am and on Saturdays at 8am. I am really loving the barbell workouts they are so much fun and different from the dumbbell workouts I was doing from October to March. Mission 2: Get Faster. · Run 4x per week · Progress from run/walk intervals to a steady 6km run · M/W/F & Sa or Su · Each run completed has a $1 reward! I have been going to the gym after work and doing about 5km of run/walk intervals. I am up to walking 2 minutes and running 7 minutes. I am hoping that in the next week or so most of the snow around here melts, so I can move from the treadmill to trail running. Once I can trail run I can also bring my dog with me! Mission 3: Get Better. · Handstand practice 4x per week at least 10 minutes each session. · Progress from no handstands to tripod/headstands and eventually somewhere down the line handstands · Tu/Thu/Sa/Su · Each practice session has a $1 reward! Handstands are just plain cool. They also help with core strength and balance which is also cool. I haven’t started my handstand practice yet so I am completely new to this one. I chose Tuesdays and Thursdays because I do not have a lot to do on those days but any day of the week is ok really as long as I get 4 sessions in. Mission 4: Get Cleaner….? · Mid-week clean 1x per week · This includes dishes, sweeping the floor, and at least 1 load of laundry on Wednesday or Thursday · Each week complete has a $1 reward! I do a good house clean on the weekend but during the week my house becomes quite the mess. Now that it is spring and things are wet and muddy it transfers to me and my dog. My dog sheds year round so there is always tons of hair….I shed year round too. I do loads of food prep Sundays and if I don’t do dishes during the week there is a GIANT pile to do at the end of the week. In order to be able to have clean workout clothes for Saturdays and nice clothes for the weekend I need to do some laundry during the week also. If I do not I am in old raggedy clothes to do my groceries and I am trying to get away from that habit. I have chosen to give myself $1 rewards for each successful goal I achieve. I have a total of $78 in rewards that I can get over the course of this challenge. At the end, I get to spend it on super fun stuff! Probably more workout clothes. If I do not complete something, I am giving the money to my sister. This won’t be happening though, no way! So that’s it for now I think. Super excited to finally be back here to complete a challenge. I cannot wait to get to know some of you too!

I've been looking to give myself a shorter term fitness goal and 6 weeks seems a great amount of time to get some things done! I'm really excited to join the community and participate after lurking and reading NF for so long. I recently rewatched 300 and watched the new 300 in theatres. That kicked me in the but. I want to look fierce! I got a gym membership at the local anytime fitness last september and bought the rebel strength guide to get me started. Been going 3 times a week since then with a brief lapse around the holidays. I feel better than ever, but am looking for some more Directed goals and accomplishments. My main goal (for year/summer): Look good when I take my shirt off (~10-12 %BF) while maintaining / increasing strength. Current Stats (240lbs, 6'0", 18-20 % BF) Goal 1: Continue going to gym 3-4 times a week for 1 hour and completing routine. Goal 2: Keep a Daily Food Log, tracking what I eat each day and portion sizes/rough caloric estimates. Goal 3: Cut out / Minimize all sweet intake. I have a weakness for cookies, and am known to half a pack in one sitting without realizing it. I'm going to make it my goal to try and eat zero cookies (and not eat other sweets) for 6 weeks. This will be a big challenge for me, but I really want to try this. Side Quest: Ask a girl out on a date. It just needs to be done. Motivation: I want to be the best version of me possible. I don't want to be the only thing holding me back. This is going to be a lot of fun. I'm starting Google Doc now for my Food Log and hitting the gym later tonight. Can't wait to get started! Edit: Adding a start picture from 2-3 days before the challenge. Will post comparison picture at the end.

Greetings fellow Rebels. I'm looking for a boon questing companion. I'm seeking a training partner. Someone who needs to be pushed, and who can push me to the next level. Ideally someone close by, interested in strength training, and obstacle course training, such as the Spartan run. Lets do this!

I was seriously considering not doing a challenge this go-round. My focus is longer-term than the 6 week periods. But, there always has to be short-term goals while building towards the long-term ones. My training plan is clear to me. I don't feel like I need to be accountable for the number of times I run or lift, at this point in the game. Therefor, I am going to pick out three performance-based goals for this challenge. So, let's do this. Goal 1 - Going the Distance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AatOnwFcbZo I've been running fairly consistently 3-4 times per week. It's time to up the frequency and distance. I am going to slowly increase my weekly mileage up to 35-40 miles per week by the end of this challenge, running 5-6 days per week. Goal 2 - Sub 21 Min 5k. I'm going conservative here. I haven't done nearly as much speed work as I need to. My long term goal is quite a bit faster than this. But, running sub 21 will be over 2 minutes faster than my last 5k race. I believe that is very manageable in the next few weeks. I am currently scheduled for two 5k races. There is a third that I am eyeing depending on schedule. Let's do it. Goal 3 - Squat 215 lbs 5x5. Yup, I'm still weak. I eased up on the lifting portion of my training towards the end of the last challenge. Part of that was related to me traveling and other scheduling. But, it was also because I felt like I needed a bit of a mental break with it. I had hit a bit of a wall with several of the lifts. I'm not sure how much of it was mental vs physical. At the time, I was struggling around the 180-190 range on the squats. I'm going to deload a bit and work back up to it. the 215 number is because it will be 50+ lbs heavier than I am at the start of this challenge. It's simply a number I can check off on my way towards a 2x BW squat. So, that's it. Simple goals that should help me get to my longer-term goals. And, I'm dropping the role-playing aspect to the challenge. Let's go!

Hi all, the second Spartan Race event in Germany has been announced, it will be in Cologne, right in my neck of the woods. http://de-de.spartanrace.com/spartan-sprint-koln-20140628 So i´ll run ,probably volunteer as well. I think having a team NF starting there would be cool. Anybody willing to join? Kilian

It's 2 minutes 18 seconds in. http://youtu.be/ep-xgd_eETE?t=2m18s I wish I could figure out why those links embedded properly 50% of the time.

Loren Wade's Urban Ranger Challenge 2 I'm continuing my life quest to be an Urban Ranger.I live a minimalist, bike-only lifestyle.I'm enduring the Wholetexalypse for 4T.I'm preparing for Go Ruck, but Tough Mudder, and Spartan are coming along too.I am kicking off this challenge with my childhood anthem, going back to my minimalist roots, embracing my jack-of-all-trades personality, and my ever-growing desire to be a Ranger in the modern world. Quest: prepare for Go Ruck.RuckRuck 6 bricks + water (1 mile + [.5 mile X week #]) ≥ 2x weekly.PTGo Ruck PT ≥ 2x weekly via MARSOC.Move​Bike, hike, ruck, run, or walk 1 hour weekly.​Reward​> 80% = arrow tee​Updates​Day 0

Given I'm doing a year of obstacle runs (knees, finances, marriage and injuries permitting) and I've spent the last two days email assorted people from work, ex-work, university, gym, church, gun running cartel (just kidding, those last two are actually the same person) etc. with pointers for running obstacle races (seriously, who died and made me an expert? I've done like 8 in my entire life...) it would be useful to have a thread where like minded individuals (or those who want to do an obstacle race one challenge) can drop in for tips, advice or to be talked off the window ledge when it inevitably hits them what they've actually signed up for (as AgentSka had to do for me a week before the Spartan Beast). A tolerance for bad puns is probably a good thing. Any articles, tips etc. I pick up (or anyone else for that matter) can be posted here. So long as it relates to running obstacle races. Or Bacon. Or is just flat out hilarious. So come one, come all, sign up for shenanigans and bacon.

On Monday, my trainer decided to set me a target (which is good, I need something to work towards). That target is the Spartan Sprint in Sussex this August. For those of you who don't know what that is, here is the website and here is a video of the 2013 course. Pretty gruelling right? That video is of the sprint, which is the least gruelling of the three. Basically, I guess I want some advice from anyone who has done anything like this before, I've got roughly 7 months to prepare as it is at the end of August, I am starting the C25K program to make sure I can cover 5km without passing out, but any other advice on what sort of training I should be doing? Any help will be most welcome!

Rebuilding the Mileage I am still on my current quest towards Spartan Strength. So, some might look at this mini-challenge goal of rebuilding the mileage as a diversion from that quest. I, however, do not. I will be continuing my quest. But, I am not a warrior, nor do I ever intend to be one. I am a ranger. And, as such, I need to be strong, as well as to be able to cover long distances quickly. Since running the Spartan at Fenway earlier this month, I have slacked on my running. This was mostly due to a MCL issue which needed to heal up. Thankfully, it has. Time to get the legs moving again. For this mini challenge, I will be focusing on getting my mileage up. I'd like to be in the vicinity of 20 miles per week for the next couple of weeks. I have a 5k that I am scheduled to run on Jan 4th. I'm not planning on setting any world records there. But, I would like to go in positive that I can run it hard. So, 10 runs during the challenge with a mileage goal 20 miles/week (+/- a few miles). I would like two of those runs to involve a track workout for time. (Unfortunately, this is a bit weather dependent. I can physically run on a snow-covered track, as I have proven. However, the "for time" part gets wiped out if it is snow-covered.) Here we go! Arrroooooo!

So about a year ago, when I was half way through my fitness journey, full of so much positive energy it just leaked from every orifice in my body I started a initiative in my office. The 10:15 push up break was born, every day, starting with just me I would get up from my desk, go into the middle of our office, and do as many push-ups as I could. At the time, I did it alone, and the most I could do was 6 full Push-ups. Still a larger guy even 6 felt like a triumph Within a week, I had an office mate join me, she too was on a fitness journey, she could only do 10 knee push-ups, but doing them made her feel great. She progressed through the year, the Push-up break a daily reminder of the commitment to fitness, over the year she is down 40lbs. By the end of the first month we had 4 people joining in, I was up to 12 full push-ups. At the end of the 3rd month the whole office was in on the 10:15 push up break! Our executive director said it was the favorite part of his day; and said it was a great idea that it started. By now I was up to 20 Push-ups. Due to the massive success of the 10:15 push-up break a 2:00 Plank break, and 4:00 stretch break were added to the daily routine in the office. Again everyone joined in, and looked forward to it every day. Months went by, sometimes people miss the break, but more often the not, the entire office assembles, gets on the ground, and pushes themselves, in more way than one. Today, almost a year after starting the break, with perfect form, completing with a growl, then a Burpee up to a jumping celebration: I did 50 push-ups in a row.

Loren Wade's Urban Ranger Mini Challenge The TL;DRLast challenge, I was an Urban Ranger.I live a minimalist, bike-only lifestyle.I'm enduring the Wholetexalypse for 4T.I'm running to prepare for Go Ruck, Tough Mudder, and Spartan.Ranger, Run! Run 3x per week.Ranger, Rest! Reacclimate to a biking commute. Hakuna Matata!

Loren Wade's Urban Ranger Challenge I am enduring The Great Wholetexalypse of 2014 for the oncoming Tenacious Texas Test of Toughness in January. I will be the best I can be before I meet the Nerd Herd. Back in March/February, I switched to a bike-only lifestyle during my very successful minimalism challenge. I am kicking off this challenge with my childhood anthem, going back to my minimalist roots, embracing my jack-of-all-trades personality, and my ever-growing desire to be a Ranger in the modern world.Quest: to gain more control of my fitness and lifestyle.DefendAttend Krav Maga 3x weekly.RangerDo at least 3 things weekly to train for Go Ruck, Spartan, and Tough Mudder.NourishTry one new recipe from Well Fed weekly.ReinforceReread It Starts With Food for Whole 82.UnlifeWrite for blog 3x weekly.Incentives80% completion = lion on a bicycle teeUpdatesDay -6Day -5Day -4Day -3Day -2Day -1Day 0Day 0.5Day 1Day 2Day 3Day 4Day 5Day 6Day 7Day 8Day 9Day 9.5Day 10Day 11Day 12Day 13Day 14Day 15Day 16Day 17Day 18Day 19Day 20Day 21Day 22Day 23Day 24Day 25Day 26Day 27Day 28Day 29Day 30Day 31Day 32Day 33Day 34Day 35Day 36Day 37Day 38Day 39Day 40Day 41Day 42

Quest for Spartan Strength I have always identified with being a runner. I grew up a runner. I got away from running and allowed life to consume me. I became soft. I put on weight. I got reeeal slow. For the majority of 2013, I have been focused on reclaiming my body and my athleticism. I set the goal to become a member of the 2013 Spartan Trifecta Tribe. And, I completed that goal last challenge period. As we close out 2013, I'm starting to prepare my performance goals for 2014. And, as I put them together, one thing becomes clear. I want and need to be stronger. When people think about runners, they don't think "strong." They think of the skinny/lean marathon type. Well, I want to be a strong runner. I want to lift more than I am currently able to. I want to hit obstacles at Spartans and complete them faster because I am stronger. When my legs tire on a run, I want to be able to focus on my arms and know that they have the strength to continue to propel me forward. This doesn't mean that I am looking to change my body type. I am not focused on any vain reasons for getting stronger. I need to get stronger to perform better. Since, I am a Spartan Ranger, I believe a great measuring tool of my strength-level can be the Spartan 300 Workout. 25 Pull-ups 50 Deadlift at 135 lbs. 50 Push-ups 50 24" Box Jumps 50 Floor Wipers at 135 lbs. 50 Kettlebell Clean and press with 36 lbs KB (25 each arm) 25 Pull-ups Main Quest Goal: Complete the Spartan 300 Workout in under 30 mins Challenge Goals: 1. Complete the Fenway Spartan Sprint twice on November 16th (+2 CON) a. Once with the Elite heat. b. Once with the Nerds. Because of this event, and my goals for it, I do not want to start a new training plan the week leading up to it. (Hence the next couple of goals will be based on 5 of the 6 weeks of the challenge.) 2. Circuit work 2x week 5/6 weeks of the challenge. (+2 DEX +2 STA) 3. Heavy Weight work at least 2x week 5/6 weeks of the challenge. (+3 STR +1 CHA) a. I have always done high rep work in the gym. Always. And, I do get stronger. But, it's time to make some strength gains with some low rep work. Still putting my workout routine together. Tips are welcome. 4 Complete 5 weeks of the 20 Chin-ups app - focusing on pull-ups. (+2 STA) Life Goal Did deeper on the Productivity Ninja-front. (+2 WIS +1 CHA) We are screaming into the busy season at work. I need to focus as much as possible on the tasks at hand. I may not be as active on the boards. I may implement some new email rules for myself, ala 4HWW. I'll hit you with the details as they happen. Starting Stats 164 lbs. Neck - 15" Chest - 38.25 Waist - 34" Hips - 35" Thighs - 21" Calves - 14" Arms - 13.75" Forearms - 10.5" BF% - 17.5% these are remarkably close to what they were the last time I took them in September, at the end of a challenge. Some growth in a couple of areas, and the BF ticked up a bit - but that could be calc error. Not concerned. This is just a reference point. But for now.... Arooooooo!

Quest for the Spartan Trifecta and Beyond! For the last year, becoming a member of the 2013 Spartan Trifecta Tribe has been the goal. Having completed two Sprints, and the Super, I am 2/3 of the way there. And, the Beast looms on the horizon. On Saturday, September 21, I will be attacking the 13 mile Beast at the Spartan World Championships in Killington, VT. And, upon crossing the finish line - that quest will conclude, and I will begin a new quest. That new quest will to be Spartan Up and get harder and stronger. So, I'm going to have to lift heavy things with endurance. I figure a good way to gauge that is by completing the 300 Workout. But, not just completing it. I want to complete it in under 30 minutes. More than likely, this quest will take longer than this 6 week challenge to complete. As of now, 50 pullups will take quite a bit of time for me to complete. And floor wipers kind of scare me since I have never completed one of them. In this post, Steve says that his fastest time for the workout was 46 minutes. I'm not sure if he's blown that out of the water since then, but because of that, I think 30 minutes is an aggressive goal. We shall see. The Goals for the Quest(s) will go hand in hand, however, and are similar to the structure of my last challenge. Main Quest Goals 1. Run at least 4 times per week. (+2 STA, +2 CON) 2. Lift/workoutTrain at least 4 times per week. (+2 STR, +2 CON) 3. Complete the World Championship Spartan Beast on 9/21 (+3 DEX) 4. Complete the 300 Workout to get a baseline time. (+1 STR, +1 CHA) Life Side Quest(s) 1. Apply what I learned in "Four Hour Work Week" into at least one project. (+2 WIS) <<---I'll post more details about this later. I've created another Goal Tracking Spreadsheet. And, here's The Motivation. Let's do this!

My last challenge took me on "The Road". It was a long road and I didn't maintain proper focus. I didn't keep up my gym work. I didn't watch my diet close enough. I slipped on the maintenance, and my wagon broke down beyond repair. But, I did increase my running. (When there is no wagon left, you have to run.) Well, my running lead me to this town. It's a picturesque area where I thought I'd stay for a bit in an effort to earn some coin & get my body back on track. However, it's filled with some curious characters, so this could prove to be an interesting 6 weeks... ** --posted the backstory for this narrative below. Goals for my stay in Shadytown. fitGoal1 - Run a 5k at 7 min/mile pace. My running has been increasing which is good. But, it has lacked a bit of focus on getting faster. In the long run, I'd like to get myself to 10 miles at 7 min/mile pace. Ah, shit. You might as well stretch that out to 13.1 miles at 7min/mile pace. But, you have to start somewhere. So, for this challenge 5k at 7 min/mile pace. +2 STA, +1 DEX, +1 CON fitGoal2 - Bodywork (not cardio) at least 4 times/week. Most of the time this should be gym work. However, a good body-weight routine will count, as well. Has to be a good routine - doing a few sets of something doesn't count. Like I said above, I lost a bit of focus on this last challenge & need to re-dedicate myself to it.* +2 STR, +1 CON fitGoal3 - 4 consecutive sets of 10 pullups with up to 2 mins rest between each set. Hangover from last challenge. I completely lost track of this last challenge (*see gym work notes), and desperately want to be better at pullups. So, here we go. +2 STR fitGoal4 - Get to 18% BodyFat on the BMI Calculator. This is (kind of) a side goal spurred on by the Minus the Armor Warriors Invitational. +1 CON, +2 CHA Starting stats: MeasurementsWeight: 165.6Height: 5'9"Waist(at narrowest for female, at navel for male): 35Hip(at widest): 36Wrist: 6.8Forearm(at widest): 10.5Neck(at narrowest): 15.35StatsBMI Body Fat: 22.49%Navy Body Fat: 26%Fat Mass: 43 lbs - from the Navy CalculatorLean Mass: 122 lbs - from the Navy Calculator lifeGoal - Head down the path of becoming a Productivity Ninja. +2 WIS, +1 CHA For too long, I have not liked the direction my productivity has been going. So, over the next 6 weeks I am going to take the following steps to become a Productivity Ninja: Keep a Zero Message Inbox during the work-week. Clear off my desk everyday before leaving work. Procure and maintain a proper filing system for home office area. Maintain and actively utilize my To Do list software. (I use OmniFocus)Additionally, I'm going to seriously consider the use of "Self Control" to limit my social media visits during the workday. I'll keep a daily spreadsheet to keep track of those goals. *I seriously considered joining a Crossfit Box. But, I really don't think I'd get the benefit out of it this summer. During the summer, I have my children with me every other week (rather than every other weekend (blech!) during the school year). The CF I'd like to join is close to where I work, 45 mins from where I live. My current gym is a Gold's. I can workout either down the street from work, or at another Gold's not far from where I live. CF boxes don't have the same kind of reciprocation rules. So, the weeks I have the kids (and may be working from home more), I'd not be able to religiously attend CF the way I'd like to. And, to pay an additional $120/mo over what I am paying now for the gym, and not be able to go religiously - seems silly. ** First time that I am really considering keeping a bit of a narrative through my challenge. We'll see how it goes. (But, I think I have a couple of fun ideas...) --Edited to include To Do List Goal & Lame Narrative back story link.

So, for this challenge, fitness is actually taking a secondary role. I have a few larger work-related goals that will help me achieve my overall goal for this challenge: being able to afford a trip to New Zealand. Ok, so everyone understands my motivation, here it is. I have a friend who lives in NZ, I've known her quite a while, and I've been in love with her for oh lets see... going on 7 years now. Some might ask why it took my 7 years to do something about it, and to that I would say she was in a relationship when I met her, and they eventually got married, and me being the guy that I am would never do anything to screw with something that was making her happy. And yes, that totally had me tied up in knots, trying to move on, because I never trusted the guy. Long story short, they got divorved a few months back. I had planned on giving her more time to herself, but I found out about a week ago that she started dating again, so the waiting is over, I'm doing something NOW. Also it's going to be almost another 2 months before I can actually get there. So that all being said, it's do or die time. And this is how I'm going to afford that blasted $1500-2000 plane ticket that is between me and the woman I've been dreaming about for almost 7 years: Goal 1: Get my mobile game to a Beta stage. This means the game should be almost ready for release, and it should be at a playable state, and all main features complete. I get paid several hundred for this milestone, not a whole ton unfortunately, as I get a large portion of sale profits. (+1 WIS, +1 CHA) Goal 2: Complete the arcade style flash game I'm currently working on. Most of it is already designed and I have someone working on the art already, all that's left is to build it. I'm going to be selling this, and on average I could expect anything upwards of $2000 - 7000 for it, depending on how well it's recieved and judged by the buyer. (+1 WIS, +2 CHA) Goal 3: Complete the wave style flash game I'm designing. I enlisted an artist friend's help this morning for this one. As I'm a programmer, my art skills are... sub-standard to say the least lol. So I already have a pretty good idea of where this is going, but we'll need to get all the specifics hammered out and then start building it. So this one probably envolves the most work. Again I'm going to be selling this one, and the deal is the same as the other. $2000 - 7000, ideally we're shooting for higher quality, so hopefully on the higher end. (+1 WIS, +3 CHA) Fitness goals Goal 1: Get up to a set of 50 pull- ups.(+1 STR) Goal 2: Get up to a set of 50 push-ups.(+1 STR) Goal 3: Work-out a minimum of 3x/week.(+1 STA, +1 CON, +2 DEX) My fitness goals are a bit less ambitious than the last challenge, but I'm going to have much less time for them. But I've got to keep myself lookin good for when I get to New Zealand

So, I've been a reader for a long while, but have purposefully not started to post until now. I'm James, 28, from London England. I decided to get into shape when a good friend of mine decided to become a personal trainer late in 2011. I was a good 20lb overweight at that point (I'm 6ft tall and was hovering around 205lb) with a sedentary lifestyle thanks to constant travel with work. I had major confidence issues in general, and had recently mostly overcome a stammer which really didn't help matters. Fast forward to today, and I'm still travelling a fair bit, but am in the gym 4-5 times a week when I'm home, and a change in jobs means I'm about to be home permanently. I've shifted most of the weight, and certainly look a lot better for it (Some muscle definition coming through in my upper body, a lot less fat everywhere), but really want to push on and get a nice flat stomach in time for a Florida vacation in November. The confidence issues are still there, but most people seem to have noticed a big change in my general demeanor, which should count for something I guess. Last year, I challenged myself to run the British London 10k, which starts in little over 9 hours, and thanks to some absent mindedness on my part, I also signed up for the color run 5k later on in the day. I've already run a 5k in at around 25 minutes, so I'm not too concerned about the distance today, but it's going to be fun. I've also signed up for a Spartan race next month and the Men's Health Survival of the Fittest in November, as these things look fun and are great to work towards. So, a summary of my goals: Cut the body fat down Be an all round bad-ass and do obstacle races Get my own house I think that's me in a nutshell. The forums here seem a fantastic library and forum for help and support, and I hope to be able to pick the collective mind of thousands of geeks whilst trying to contribute. If anyone is running either race tomorrow, drop me a message!

To say that a lot has happened since last I sullied the challenge boards would be an understatement: I've changed jobs (went from Director of Technology at a small private school to English teacher at a huge high school), MSI has released a new album ("...I'm gonna break the english language with my four letter flow..."), and I have officially registered for the Carolinas Spartan Beast, a 12+ mile / 25+ obstacle mud run on Novemeber 9th (anybody want to join me? I've started a team...). That gives me three ("...not one, not two, four's definitely out...") challenges to get ready. As I thought about all the changes that have occurred, I realized that spartan was not only the name of my upcoming run, it was also the perfect theme for this challenge. "Rigorously self-disciplined or self-restrained; Simple, frugal, or austere" With that in mind, my goals are geared towards simplifying / developing self-discipline while building over the next two challenges to get to culminate in my run Nov 9th. Diet - Track everything (WIS +2) Initially, I'm not going to worry about WHAT I'm eating as much as making myself aware of what I'm eating. I'll stil be using moderation and trying to make good choices, I'm just not going to obsess over any specific aspect of my diet. Using the data I collect this challenge, I'll tweak my diet goals next challenge to hit specific targets. Grading will be based on days tracked each week with the weekly grades averaged at the end of the challenge. A = 6-7 days B = 5 days C = 4 days D = 3 days F = 2 or fewer Workouts - 5 per week (STR +3, CON +2) While the focus of the workouts will change dynamically throughout (various combinations of raw strength and functional workouts), as a minimum I'll be shooting for five per week. With two different vacations scheduled for mid-June and early July, this could get tricky. As with the diet tracking, I'll be giving myself a weekly grade then averaging them at the end. A = 5 B = 4 C = 3 D = 2 F = 1 Cardio - 5 per week (STA +3, CHA +2) To count, must consist of 30 min of HIIT or cover a distance of 2 miles. The plan is to vary this a bit to try to get accustomed to unusual terrain / conditions, including off-road, obstacle courses, . Grading will be same as Workouts above. Finances - Begin rebuilding savings by setting aside $300 in a separate account It sounds like a small amount, but the job change was challenging financially for a number of reasons (change in payday, extended time lapse between receiving last check at old job and first check at new job), and really made me painfully aware of how important having a significant cushion can be. There are a number of ways to accomplish this (for example, ditching cable TV...we actually bought a Roku last week and will be returning our cable boxes next week--that alone will save us nearly $200 a month in our budget), but grading the end result seems both easier and more efficient. No weekly grade, just an end grade based on total amount in the account at the end of the challenge. A = $250-300 B = $200-250 C = $150-200 D = $100-150 F = <$100 General goals, but easily quantifiable, and oes designed to get me to where I need to be for the next challenge, then the next, then my run. Looking forward to spending more time in the community after being AWOL for over two months!

Anyone else going to the Spartan Sprint down in Washougal this year? I am training to get to where I can do the trifecta of Spartan races and would love to network with other people that are doing the same! http://www.spartanrace.com/pacific-northwest-obstacle-racing-spartan-sprint-2013.html#.