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A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away... Episode V A NEW HOPE It is a dark time for Starstuff. Seduced by the call of Dark Side, she has spent many months away from the REBELLION and her Jedi training. After a fearful encounter with the dark lord Darth Complacency, Starstuff realized the true price of the Dark Side of the Force and vowed to rid herself of its influence. Accompanied by her new companion, the canine FN-2187, Starstuff leaves the remote ice world of Sloth in search of her Rebel friends... It's been a while, but I'm back! Since I was last here, I acquired a new puppy (yes, we really did name him FN-2187, but he mostly goes by Finn), ran my first full marathon, and then used finishing my first marathon as an excuse to slack off on, well, basically everything for the past four months. Needless to say, I have not been progressing much toward my goals, health or otherwise, and in some cases I've made some serious negative progress. But the time for slacking has passed, and I'm ready to rejoin the ranks of the Rebellion. Goal 1: Attend Rebel mission briefings I decided to bite the bullet and try out Rising Heroes, so this goal is simply to complete all of my Rising Heroes missions every week during the challenge. Full credit for missions completed on time, 75% credit for missions completed after they expire. Goal 2: Perimeter patrol If you're going to have a successful rebellion, it's important to patrol your base for Imperial probe droids...or zombies. To that end, I will run three Zombies, Run! missions every week. Goal 3: Ration supplies Running a rebellion means using what few supplies you have to the greatest effect. I don't tend to make the best food choices in the moment, either health-wise or budget-wise, so my goal is to prep my lunches for the week every weekend, and then actually eat what I've prepped to take in-the-moment decision making out of the equation for the meal that gives me the most trouble in that regard. Life goal: Forge a holocron Holocrons are used to store information and Jedi teachings. They take a great deal of time and work to forge properly. Much like writing a novel! It will no doubt take me many challenges to complete my "holocron," but my goal for this challenge is to add 500 words to my novel every day. _____________________________________________________________ Updated with goals, but I'm keeping the picture of my pup because I love looking at his cute, fuzzy face.

Two challenges ago, I set the bar too high and felt bad about failing. Last challenge, I simply quit because depression had the upper hand and I could handle exactly one percent of the life I was living. So. Recognizing that depression can severely limit my capacity to do what needs doing, I’m going to approach this challenge carefully and with respect for what I can do at the moment. OK, that’s crap. I don’t respect myself and I know it. But as Carrie Fisher said, “do it anyway.” Maybe the confidence will follow. I’m coming back and trying again because the alternative is to stay the way I am. That is: depressed, plagued with terrible migraines, unable to do the things I want to do, feeling awful about myself and with a closet full of clothes that don’t fit. I could stay that way, sure, but maybe I can start making little changes that can only mean my life gets better a little bit at a time. I am so tired of living at the bottom of the ocean. My much-more-modest goals for this challenge: Recognize at least one negative thought every day and workshop it until I can come up with another way of looking at it. I don’t have to believe it yet; I just have to go through the motions for now. Plan three healthy family meals a week. We don’t eat junk, but we could eat better. Walk at least ten minutes a day: to work from the parking lot, up and down my road, whatever. Bonus points for my favorite five-mile walk on Sundays. Do three bodyweight workouts a week from darebee.com. Be OK if I don’t do all of it perfectly. This may not be the most exciting challenge posted this month, but when you're in my position and find that from time to time not being alive actually has some appeal, it seems more than exciting enough to me. I’m changing my avatar from Rey to General Leia for this challenge because although Rey still has work to do, Carrie Fisher was a badass about her own mental health and still found a way to run a rebellion.

Welcome back for another episode of the exciting Adventures of JediNickD! It was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away that I joined this site and started my first challenge. Upon my return, I have decided to revisit some of my challenge themes to turn them into lessons as I had been doing more recently. I feel it is a good way to reflect on my own learning and progress to write about and share these lessons, but I also have another objective. I am cataloging these lessons in a document which is now up to 142 pages. The plan is to use this document as a reference for my personal Jedi training and to pass on for my Padawan training. It isn't just my Nerd Fitness challenges. It includes every Jedi-related writing I have done, training I have worked through, and documents I have collected (which are not protected but have sources noted). Challenge Lesson: "Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future." -- Yoda, Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back Yoda is very powerful and knowledgeable in the Force. Typically, he has the ability to see events well into the future, but it can be clouded by the dark side or the tipping of scales of large decisions. In this quote, Yoda was specifically referring to the fates of Han, Chewie, and Leia in the hands of Darth Vader on Bespin since Luke's choice to stay or go and his potential to fall to the dark side factored heavily into the events outcome, but Yoda's words carry more weight to it. Predicting the future is always reliant on current conditions and knowledge. As things happen and new things come to light, those predictions become more or less likely. The predictions could drastically change due to new information or occurrences. There are too many unforeseen variables at times. Being aware of how our decisions can influence the future is important to achieving the future we desire. Being aware of outside influences and the potential for unpredictable occurrences can help prepare for detours and breakdowns. My Main Quest and Mission: My mission is to be the best Jedi I can be. My main quest is always to enhance my overall health, fitness, and knowledge to be prepared for whatever challenges life could throw at me. As a Jedi, I need to be able to help people, whether that is a life threatening situation or just a charitable one. There is no boss level in Jedi training, there is only tomorrow. World 2 Level 7 Challenge: FITNESS: Cardio: Speed and Stamina - 500 min total, 120 weekly. DEX +1, STA +2 The weekly plan is a minimum of two tabata runs with Pokémon Go. These runs are to include at least 5 sprints of ~50 meters for increased intensity. It's getting cold outside, so I may move to a treadmill for a few of the runs. We'll see how it goes. I'll also have 60 minutes of racquetball on Fridays. I'd like to do some field or gym training for rugby, soccer, and football footwork and ball work, as well. Exercise: Stretch and Strengthen - 500 min total, 120 weekly. STR +2, DEX +1 The weekly plan includes 10 minutes of regular stretching each day, two 20 minute sessions of physical therapy exercises and 20 minutes of other strength training each week. The minimum leaves 40 minutes to make up by the end of the challenge. Karate: Training and Practice - 500 min total, 120 weekly STR +1, DEX +1, STA +1 Better to count Karate by itself. It is too difficult to predict or categorize the classes as Cardio or Strengthening. Plan is 2 classes a week for 45 min each. Add a third class or a individual practice for the last 30 min. DIET: Weight Control - Lose 2 lbs by end of challenge. Never weigh more than 159.5 lbs. Complete measurements before or during Week 1 and again during or after Week 4. Watch portions and make healthy choices for 24 of 28 days. CON +2 Going to eat salad and veggies as much as possible with apples and dark chocolate as my sugary snacks. Avoid soda, ice cream, and potato chips. Minimize cheese and nuts. Most importantly, I have to continue to watch my portions. I cannot ever have two "large" meals in one day. Aiming for one small meal and one medium meal a day, keeping breakfast as small as possible. LIFE: Get Stuff Done - Complete 60 Tasks or Projects, with at least 12 a week, from any of the following areas (max for challenge, no more than 3 each per week): Toastmasters Communication Practice (2), Toastmasters Leadership Practice (4), Webmaster Work (6), Mentoring (8), Charity Work (8), Jedi Training (4), Self Preservation (2), Church Work (4), Job Work (8), Household Chores (8), Yard Work (8), Animal Care (8), Home Renovation (8), Auto Maintenance (8), Family Activities (8), Adventuring (6). WIS +2, CHA +2 No longer worried about diversity. I want to continue to get the important weekly things done while looking for the neglected areas. I NEED to revisit my IJRS Jedi Training this challenge. It has been too long. Auto Maintenance will be important to get to before the weather gets too cold and icy. Same with any Home Renovation and Yard Work. Incorporating a reward and consequence has been really helpful, so I'll keep doing that. REWARD: For each week I complete 12 or more tasks, I will put $10 aside for buying something just for me. CONSEQUENCE: For any week where I complete less than 12 tasks, I will give up $10 of saved cash. BONUS: $5 for each IJRS Lesson completed. Major Dates: Disney World Dec 1st-5th, Christmas Weekend Dec 23rd-26th. Each of these periods will need to be planned carefully to meet my goals.

Moment of honesty here; Starpuck is starting to falter. The Dark Side whispers temptations into my mind and they are growing harder and harder to resist. I'm just starting to feel like nothing works and when nothing works, hope is lost and motivation falls with it. I don't want that to be the case, so I must double my efforts. I need to SEEK these changes and have trust in the Force that it will come together. This challenge will be a lot of the same as last, though with a few tweaks. Bring Balance to the Force- Food. 1A) Eat as clean as possible, limit splurges, don't have frak it moments. 1B) Veggies and fruits - 3x / day. 1C) Debating yet on if I want to track or not. On one side, data is good - on the other side, with motivation at its low, maybe I should save it for some of the other tasks. Knowledge- the life of a Jedi should be one of constant learning, constant self-improvement. Mental/Spiritual Improvement 2A) Every morning, read a chapter. 2B) Every morning, write affirmation. 2C) Art - 3x/week + more frequent quick sketches. 2D) One night a week, set uninterrupted time aside to read book for 30 minutes. Physical Improvement 3A) Lift 2-3x / week. 3B) Sweat (without lifting) 2-3x / week. 3C) Yoga 1x / week I seriously have the biggest crush on this ^ Obi-wan. I love him. I want to marry him. And I think he was a really good Jedi. I have heard people debate and theorize on who was the stronger Jedi at the time of Revenge of the Sith. Obi-wan or Anakin. At the end of the short commentary this person put up, they said something that has stuck with me ever since. Anakin was more powerful naturally in the force, Obi-wan had to apply himself more and work harder- and due to that, he was able to defeat Anakin on Mustafar. I really want to emulate Obi-wan's commitment and perseverance. In NF terms, simply put: Obi-wan had to play on Hard Mode and he ended up kicking ass. I want to be like Obi-wan. There are a few other things I need to jot down here tomorrow (I have the day off) and I am officially starting this challenge on Monday because Monday's just work better for me. I also had a pretty hectic weekend of wakes, funerals, hockey games, birthday parties and then a dumping of 6" of snow to contend with today. But. Here's the challenge folks. Wish me luck.

"There's so much to learn, how will I know if I'm even doing the right things?" "I want to become a great Jedi, it's just sometimes I feel like I don't have the right tools... the right training. I mean, during the Old Republic a young Jedi would be taken in by a Master; someone to guide their learning. Maybe I need to find one of these Masters. I can't be the only one out here... right?" GOAL: To become a Jedi Padawan; to learn strength of mind and body, to find peace with myself, and to learn how to balance the force. In real terms? I struggle with an unhealthy obsession on whether or not I am doing the right thing with my goals and training. Like... am I eating too much? Too little? Is my body really only burning 1700 calories a day when I am lazy? People tell me 'oh it must be muscle' - and no, no it's not. Because my belt holes have moved in the opposite direction; my clothes are tighter not looser, and the scale is hovering in the same god awful position in Hutt Space as it has all summer. I really want someone that can help me through this- a trained someone. A smart someone. I have tried the personal trainers at the local gyms and none of them were good. From showing up late to the sessions, to laughing when I've said "the pain doesn't stop, ever", or teaching such terrible form that even a mostly untrained noob like myself can spot the trouble. So. Shameless plea for help - any of you out there that would be willing to take on a virtual padawan? This one really needs a master! Physical Training - Continue being active for the majority of the week. +Hockey, +Lifting, +Body weight, +Running, +Dancing, +Hiking, +Moving Rest as needed; yoga and stretching can count for active rest. Goal 6 days/week of activity. Reality: I know that in the past, the 'body' I am most proud of, was attained by 3x lifting, 3x running. The lifting is the important part of that, so I am going to focus on nailing the 3x a week there, and letting the 'run' be any manner of sweat-inducing cardio like activity. This will avoid burn out. Mental Training - Mindful fueling of the body will require a mental focus that is not easily tempted to the darkside (which has cookies). +Healthful choices, +Mindful eating, +Variety, +Tracking Calories Exceptions allowed, under control and with good reason. Florida Vacation special outings, etc. Goal 6 days/week of tracking. Veggies/Fruit 3x daily! Reality: Vacation will be hard. I may not have even a good clue on how to track the calories there. My choices are to either give up completely, or continue to track and take the best guess possible. I am going to enact a reward for this one because it is truly a Jedi Worthy Trial to track calories for a TEN DAY VACATION!!! If all 10 days are tracked; I will allow myself to use my tax return on getting a custom made Jedi outfit, tailored to my size specifically, that is a hooded outer tunic style. Like the one below: Finding Balance - Too much focus on the martial abilities will detract from the more philosophical lessons a Jedi must learn. +Art, +Sewing, +Reading, +Churching, +Daily Lessons Goal 3 days/week of arting. Goal 1 day/week reading. Goal 1 day/week personal bible study/devotional lesson, etc. Goal 1x/week - Post a self-affirmation. Reality: Arting is coming along so well, even the days I look and think I've regressed, that I MUST keep this up. It's exciting to see myself approach the 1 year anniversary of having my tablet/software, and a little bit beyond that for just getting the pencil to the paper in general. I also keep saying 'I want to finish this book, or read that book'. I need to find some time to do it. So starting easy with 1x a week. The devotional thing is because I can't seem to find time to join a life group with my church (or find one that I think suits me) so for now, I'd like to take a bit of time once a week, maybe in the morning instead of putzing on Facebook, to do a small personal study. As for the final goal - this is an old one returned because I am back to beating myself up over things. MAN I HATE THIS GOAL! But it's necessary. ADDITIONAL TASKS TO CONQUER - Get my inner tunic done. - Sew alternate color tabard and obi. - Begin the BWR&H program- because these are very cool Jedi things and how awesome would it be to be in full costume with the Rebel Legion and pull off a handstand?! - Cancel KO's Strong Program for the time being. While cool, at $20 a month, I am only getting 2 workouts to alternate for four weeks. Not keeping my interest. - Call doc and schedule annual visit. - Plan a super awesome b-day party for my super awesome, "Hey, you can get a mount now!" b-day! I think I have all the pieces together now to put out an amazing challenge! Week four will be especially difficult, but the rewards are worth it! And hopefully, I will find a Master along this journey that can help guide me to a place where I am moving within the will of the force.

Welcome back for another episode of the exciting Adventures of JediNickD! It was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away that I joined this site and started my first challenge. Upon my return, I have decided to revisit some of my challenge themes to turn them into lessons as I had been doing more recently. I feel it is a good way to reflect on my own learning and progress to write about and share these lessons, but I also have another objective. I am cataloging these lessons in a document which is now up to 136 pages. The plan is to use this document as a reference for my personal Jedi training and to pass on for my Padawan training. It isn't just my Nerd Fitness challenges. It includes every Jedi-related writing I have done, training I have worked through, and documents I have collected (which are not protected but have sources noted). Challenge Lesson: "Size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you? Hmm? Hmm. And well you should not. For my ally is the Force, and a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter. You must feel the Force around you; here, between you, me, the tree, the rock, everywhere, yes. Even between the land and the ship." -- Yoda, Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back What my experience at Nerd Fitness has taught me is that there is always time, it is just a matter of priority. There is no to-do list too daunting, there is no bar too high, and there is no skill that cannot be learned. It takes prioritization, motivation, and determination. There will be failures along the rode, but those are learning opportunities. There will be obstacles in your way, but those are problem solving opportunities. There will be risks and consequences to the journey, but those are just costs for the reward. Size is just a measurement from a perspective. Find what aspect of you perspective the size is relevant to and change it. The size will change with it. Think of yourself as an ant. Everything human is huge or irrelevant to your life. Think of yourself as the moon. Everything on Earth is tiny and irrelevant to your life. Now, relate that to your goal. What are the things that make the goal appear impossible? How can you turn those things into something possible? Let's say you overweight and would like to be able to run a mile. You are 30, the last time you ran a mile was high school, and even then it was a chore. That goal looks enormous. Well, you can't do anything about your age, but you can do something about the weight. You can do something about your puny muscles and weak lungs. Pretend those obstacles are solved. Does the mile still look difficult? Now, take aim at the sub-goals you have: lose weight, gain muscles, build stamina. Find the aspects that make the task difficult. Of course, Yoda is speaking specifically of the Force and how it knows no bounds. Just as the Force has no bounds, neither should one's belief in it. Belief, creativity, passion, empathy, faith, ambition are just a few concepts which know no bounds. Artificial bounds in these concepts stunts growth and understanding. If you want to be enlightened, then find a path across any artificial bounds in these areas. Sometimes it is another matter of changing perspective. My Main Quest and Mission: My mission is to be the best Jedi I can be. My main quest is always to enhance my overall health, fitness, and knowledge to be prepared for whatever challenges life could throw at me. As a Jedi, I need to be able to help people, whether that is a life threatening situation or just a charitable one. There is no boss level in Jedi training, there is only tomorrow. World 2 Level 7 Challenge: FITNESS: Work Up a Sweat - 600 minutes of conditioning training for the entire challenge. DEX +2, STA +3 The weekly plan is a minimum of two 60 minute tabata runs with Pokémon Go. These runs are to include at least 5 sprints of ~50 meters for increased intensity. It's getting cold outside, so I may move to a treadmill for a few of the runs. We'll see how it goes. I'll also have 60 minutes of racquetball on Fridays. I'd like to do some field or gym training for rugby, soccer, and football footwork and ball work, as well. Stretch and Strengthen - 600 minutes of exercises and stretches for the entire challenge. STR +2, DEX +1 The weekly plan includes 10 minutes of regular stretching each day, two 20 minute sessions of physical therapy exercises and 30 minutes of other strength training each week. The minimum leaves 40 minutes to make up by the end of the challenge. DIET: Weight Control - Lose 2 lbs by end of challenge. Never weigh more than 161 lbs. Complete measurements before or during Week 1 and again during or after Week 4. I tend to over eat at gatherings on the weekend. I plan to eat as little as possible at the next gatherings, Thanksgiving included. CON +3 Going to eat salad and veggies as much as possible with apples and dark chocolate as my sugary snacks. Avoid soda, ice cream, and potato chips. Minimize cheese and nuts. Most importantly, I have to continue to watch my portions. I cannot ever have two "large" meals in one day. LIFE: Get Stuff Done - Complete 28 Tasks or Projects from any of the following areas: Toastmasters Communication Practice, Toastmasters Leadership Practice, Webmaster Work, Jedi Training, Job Work, Charity Work, House Work, Yard Work, Animal Care, Home Renovation, Auto Maintenance, Family Activities, Adventuring (to keep it diverse, no more than 4 from any one category) WIS +2, CHA +2 I need to revisit my IJRS Jedi Training this challenge. It has been too long. Auto Maintenance will be important to get to before week 4 as we have a long drive for Thanksgiving. Same with any Home Renovation and Yard Work. Incorporating a reward and consequence has been really helpful, so I'll keep doing that. REWARD: For each week I complete 7 or more tasks, I will put $10 aside for buying something just for me. CONSEQUENCE: For any week where I complete less than 7 tasks, I will give up $10 of saved cash. Major Dates: Nov 5th Extra Life Game Day, Nov 19th My Birthday, November 22nd-26th Thanksgiving Travel. Each of these weeks will need to be planned carefully to meet my goals.

"Your doubts will become your failure. Your failure will lead to anger. Soon, the dark side shall have power over you, and you will welcome it's embrace." It has been some time since I have truly run a challenge with focus, sincerity and commitment. I need to get on game here. I don't need to aim for perfect execution; though that would certainly be welcome- but aim for perfect effort. While the goals are getting monotonous, I need to keep them where they're at until it's my routine life, and not something that must be reached for and tallied. I want to continue to try new things though as well, so I will set my weekly goals and also have a 'to do during the challenge' list. Conquer Defeatism "Try not! Do, or do not. There is no try." Young Jedi also learned that defeatism was just as dangerous as overconfidence. Although it might have seemed contradictory to the goals of conquering overconfidence, a Jedi would first plan for success, then for failure. Jedi who always plan for failure expected to lose, and usually only used minimal effort—enough to say that they had tried. #1 - Write weekly schedule on Sunday night or Monday morning, planning the week ahead. #2 - Track calories for food daily. #3 - Keep track of progress on excel sheet, because visible progress encourages me. ** Stop telling myself that I cannot do these things. I CAN do them. I WILL do them.** Conquer Recklessness "Learn to recognize when speed is not important. Race when being first is important; move at your own pace at all other times. It is not necessary to always strike the first blow, to provide the first solution, or to reach a goal before anyone else does. In fact, it is sometimes vital to strike the last blow, to give the final answer, or to arrive after everyone else." Many young Jedi lacking in self-restraint were always ready to ignite their lightsabers and plunge straight into battle. They perceived a goal and rushed towards it, without any consideration for unseen dangers or other options. And so Jedi were taught that speed did not necessarily lead to success. #1 - Approach lifts and exercise slowly as I get back into routine. #2 - Strength train 2-3x/week. *Pending hockey schedule. IE, do not be reckless. #3 - Move 2x/week. *Hockey will be extra. As I shift from biking season to running season-> Start. Slow. ** Legit reasons are valid. All other reasons are excuses. Start slow, aim for reasonable improvement. Patience I must have.** Jedi seek to improve themselves through knowledge and training. “There is no ignorance, there is knowledge.” No longer will one act on ignorance, but search for true knowledge of a given situation. Do not act on assumptions, but rather from facts gained from learning. Find calm so that you might study and learn about a scenario instead of acting without learned information. Do not become lazy, lest you end up lacking the knowledge needed to complete a task correctly. #1 - Continue to practice drawing/art. 3x/week #2 - Find a book or tutorial to start really learning Manga Studio. #3 - Work on sewing/costuming. 1x/week ** Playtime must come after personal improvement time. For the jedi, there is time to game as well.** List of things to do during challenge: - After Oct 1st, eye doctor (We are getting a vision plan on Oct 1st!) - Go through old pictures, retake kid-friend pics and send collage to my dad. - Finish costume. **More to come. It's wicked late right now. Let's get this training started! Starting Data Weight 154.4 (ugh) Measurements (to come)

Welcome back for another episode of the exciting Adventures of JediNickD! It was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away that I joined this site and started my first challenge. Upon my return, I have decided to revisit some of my challenge themes to turn them into lessons as I had been doing more recently. I feel it is a good way to reflect on my own learning and progress to write about and share these lessons, but I also have another objective. I am cataloging these lessons in a document which is now up to 136 pages. The plan is to use this document as a reference for my personal Jedi training and to pass on for my Padawan training. It isn't just my Nerd Fitness challenges. It includes every Jedi-related writing I have done, training I have worked through, and documents I have collected (which are not protected but have sources noted). Challenge Lesson: "You must unlearn what you have learned." - Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back Chinese Scholar Tokusan, who was full of knowledge and opinions about the dharma, came to Chinese Zen Master Ryutan and asked about Zen. At one point Ryutan re-filled his guest's teacup, but did not stop pouring when the cup was full. Tea spilled out and ran over the table. "Stop! The cup is full!" said Tokusan. "Exactly," said Master Ryutan. "You are like this cup; you are full of ideas. You come and ask for teaching, but your cup is full; I can't put anything in. Before I can teach you, you'll have to empty your cup." In Jedi training, it is important to let go of lessons learned in the past to learn to see the world in a new way. During my Jedi Training at the IJRS in 2012, I took a course on the Force with lessons analyzing my use of intuition. I found that I typically ignore my intuition when I shouldn't. I rely on logic, which is fine as long as you have all the facts. When my intuition and logic do not align, it is because I do not have all the critical information to make a decision. To rely more on my intuition requires that I take a leap of faith, which I am not in the habit of doing. Listening to the wise words of Yoda, I am relying on my intuition more and more. Since 2012, I have discovered my intuition can be remarkably accurate in pushing me in a positive direction before I "know" the desired information to make an informed decision. In my Toastmasters training, I have found that my initial practice and preparation techniques for speaking in front of others was all wrong for my confidence and self esteem. I used to write out the entire speech and choreograph the entire speech. I'd rehearse until I could do it by heart. It worked great... for practice. As soon as I was in front of an audience, I had to be perfect. If I goofed anything, it made me sweat and it threw the entire speech off track. I take a much more casual approach to speech writing now. I jot down some notes about what I want to talk about, maybe work out a line or two which will be the take away for the speech, then I just speak the speech over and over. I get to know the points I want to make and discover how I naturally say them and look for better ways to say them just working on my natural abilities. This allows me to be more comfortable in front of the audience, since there is no strict scripture. I just have to know my material forward and back which allows me to think on my feet better and focus on connecting with the audience. My goal for public speaking is to make an impact on the audience, give them something to walk away with, and influence lives. When I started Toastmasters, my goal was just to not be horrible and fearful of public speaking. I am beyond that and actually enjoy public speaking. It has given me leadership opportunities which I thought would always be out of reach, because I was a chicken. Well, this chicken crossed the road and became a confident rooster. For my fitness training, I always believed that running for the sake of running is boring. I had a hard time finding ways to make running interesting or a priority. After the Zombie, Run! app didn't work, I thought I'd give up on distance and focus on sprinting, since I enjoy being fast. Unfortunately, unless someone is chasing me like in playing football and rugby or there is a team I am competing with, I don't really enjoy sprinting enough to push myself to new heights. I discovered this summer that I just needed the right motivation. I now run with Pokémon Go. The longer I run, the further I go, the more Pokémon I catch and the more I progress in the game. The gyms are always just difficult enough to present a challenge and push me to keep improving. I fear that once I dominate gyms with my superior Pokémon, that I might not enjoy the game as much. I've noticed that some players have created a second account to help them hold down gyms, getting them to level 2 or 3. I kind of think of that as cheating, since the game really wants you to team up with other players. If the game starts to get boring, then I have these two options to make it more interesting. Starting from scratch with a second account or finding players to team up with on my morning runs, gym battles, etc. Those morning runs will always be important in progressing to the next level in the game, so I don't really see that part getting boring. I might just need to change the setting for my runs to discover different Pokémon. There are lots of areas where we fill up our minds with knowledge and opinions, but to truly grow you need to look past what you already know or think, see things from different perspectives, try different approaches, and experience new things. To continue to do things the same way, you will only get the same results. Change is growth. Empty the cup. Unlearn what you have unlearned to properly prepare yourself to be enlightened. My Main Quest and Mission: My mission is to be the best Jedi I can be. My main quest is always to enhance my overall health, fitness, and knowledge to be prepared for whatever challenges life could throw at me. As a Jedi, I need to be able to help people, whether that is a life threatening situation or just a charitable one. There is no boss level in Jedi training, there is only tomorrow. World 2 Level 5 Challenge: FITNESS: Work Up a Sweat - 600 minutes of conditioning training for the entire challenge. DEX +2, STA +3 The weekly plan is a minimum of three 45 minute tabata runs with Pokémon Go, plus plenty of walking, hiking, or other activities. I crushed my goal last challenge, but my family tends to throw a wrench in all plans I make for evenings and weekends. The minimum won't get me to my goal. I have to go above the minimum for at least 60 minutes. Stretch and Strengthen - 600 minutes of exercises and stretches for the entire challenge. STR +2, DEX +1 The weekly plan includes 10 minutes of regular stretching each day, two 20 minute sessions of physical therapy exercises and 30 minutes of other strength training each week. The minimum leaves 40 minutes to make up by the end of the challenge. DIET: Weight Control - Lose 2 lbs by end of challenge. Never weigh more than 163 lbs. Complete measurements before or during Week 1 and again during or after Week 4. The last part of this challenge is that I want to minimize how many times I have the thought, "I ate too much". I will count and report on each time I have that thought to identify how I can avoid the pitfall in the future. CON +3 Going to eat salad and veggies as much as possible with apples and dark chocolate as my sugary snacks. Avoid soda, ice cream, and potato chips. Minimize cheese and nuts. Most importantly, I have to watch my portions. I cannot ever have two "large" meals in one day. LIFE: Get Stuff Done - Complete 28 Tasks or Projects from any of the following areas: Toastmasters Communication Practice, Toastmasters Leadership Practice, Webmaster Work, Jedi Training, Job Work, Charity Work, House Work, Yard Work, Home Renovation, Auto Maintenance, Family Activities (to keep it diverse, no more than 4 from any one category) WIS +2, CHA +2 I'm still procrastinating, deciding to do the fun stuff first and delay the less fun stuff. Jedi Training is definitely something that is not getting any focus. I added more areas to the list to track (I don't want to not do something just because it doesn't make the list) and increased to 28 total (7 a week, or 1 a day). Incorporating a reward and consequence has been really helpful, so I'll keep doing that. My wife identified that we may be playing too much in our free time together and not getting to the bigger projects. She works weekends, so we have very little time where we can tackle a project together. The focus has been on smaller projects where single parenting is easier. When we are together, we usually have plans for something fun. I am having trouble motivating the kids to be useful with weekly chores, as well. I think I have a viable solution. REWARD: For each week I don't procrastinate undesirable tasks (where I think "I'll do it later") where I overcome procrastination and do it or at least work on it, I'll reward myself with one game of Madden Saturday morning. CONSEQUENCE: If I procrastinated at all, then I have to give up my morning to working on something I procrastinated. This plan won't influence my goal grade, but it will give me incentive to do all the things, instead of just the fun ones. Some might look at my reward scheme and think, "why not have a reward and consequence for the other goals", and my response is that I do. A healthier, muscular, sexy body is all the reward I need. ;-)

Commitment has been a hurdle for some time now. Always eager to begin, reluctant to continue. "A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind. This one, a long time have I watched. All his life has he looked away to the future, the horizon. Never his mind on where he was . Hmm? What he was doing." - Yoda to Luke, EP IV My hurdle has always been looking to the past. What I used to be able to do, what I have previously accomplished, where I was before this or that happened. It's self defeating and takes away from the accomplishments I earn in the present. I am largely going to be repeating my last challenge, albeit with more side quests. I faded away there during and after my vacation (as I had feared might happen) and we're going into fall and winter. I normally gain weight at this time of the year --- this year it's more dangerous because I did not LOSE weight over the summer like I typically do. I've taken a nice long break from tracking food and calories, and even lost almost 2lbs while on vacation. (Since gained back... damn Oreo addiction.) I want to try and do the impossible. I want to lose weight over the winter this year! There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no Ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is only the Force. GOAL #1 - There is no emotion, there is peace. This is not to rid myself of all emotion, emotions are good. But the focus will be to counter the negative emotions! Like, stress, anxiety, frustration, lack of patience, etc. My form of meditation will be prayer. Because I'm really bad at this. Really really really bad. This will be a perfect chance to work on developing a new habit. So as not to overwhelm, and to keep things attainable, we're starting off with a very small goal, and allowing some other things to count toward this. Prayer, Meditation, Yoga: 3x/week GOAL #2 - There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. It is time once again to focus on knowledge. The Dark Side would see us fail by ignoring what information we have access to! I will return to tracking calories in and out for the duration of this challenge. At that point, I will see what results were had, and adjust from there. Four weeks is not that long - and this is not new to me. It will go by fast, and I will have regained some baseline data. Track Food and Exercise with MFP: 7x/week Minimum to consume 1500, maximum based on exercise. **Exceptions allowed during vacation to Isle Royale. Track as best as I can, but no stress over it. GOAL #3 - There is no passion, there is serenity Newsflash. When Starpuck gets into something "new", she tips the scales at a fast and hard 150% involved point. I love a lot of things. I need to become a better steward of my hobbies and passions. I've just added a new thing I want to get into. It's impossible to just keep adding plates, and things to plates. I must learn to balance them. Creative Outlets: 3x / week Includes: art (sketching and digital), website/RPG projects, and the newcomer to the mix... sewing! (Attempting to learn to sew for costuming reasons.) Step out of Routine, explore your world: 1x / week Examples: A more significant hike, a bike ride in a new area, meeting with friends instead of playing online, doing things that others like even if it's not your favorite thing, try new things, pull out an old hobby, etc. GOAL #4 - There is no chaos, there is harmony. Total freedom on the exercise front seems to not go so well. Setting goals, on the other hand, seems to work well. It allows me to better fit in the various types of training I want to accomplish -aka, harmony between my activities. Force Lift: 2x/week engage in strength training. Force Push: 2x/week engage in movement, pushing myself to run, bike, etc. Force Balance will include yoga, and may be performed any number of times per week, but count toward my meditation goal. GOAL #5 - There is no death, debt, there is only the Force. An adulting goal. Primarily, this will consist of writing out and sticking to a budget. I realized that I am in a great place to save some money, if I just manage it better. My vacations are over and paid for. My weekend at the con will happen the day before this challenge starts. There will be no reason for impulse spending or random purchases. Step 1: Write Budget Step 2: Follow Budget Step 3: Put $300 into savings by end of challenge. Side Missions for this Challenge Find the Jedi, and potentially, a master to train under. - Join one of the small groups at my church, and/or get more involved in serving. Join the Rebel Alliance - Push past my comfort zone and get involved/accepted to the Rebel Legion Fight in the Battle of Endor - Potential goal here, not yet decided. Do a forest photo shoot while in the U.P of Michigan. Force powers; ForeSEE - Stop procrastinating on finding a new eye doctor, and get in for an appt!

Welcome back for another episode of the exciting Adventures of JediNickD! It was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away that I joined this site and started my first challenge. Upon my return, I have decided to revisit some of my challenge themes to turn them into lessons as I had been doing more recently. I feel it is a good way to reflect on my own learning and progress to write about and share these lessons, but I also have another objective. I am cataloging these lessons in a document which is now up to 136 pages. The plan is to use this document as a reference for my personal Jedi training and to pass on for my Padawan training. It isn't just my Nerd Fitness challenges. It includes every Jedi-related writing I have done, training I have worked through, and documents I have collected (which are not protected but have sources noted). So what is my story? As I said, I've been here before. I kicked a lot of butt progressing through 22 challenges since 2012, until middle of 2015. After struggling to maintain a presence here through the first half of 2015, I struck out on my own as I had conquered many obstacles here, learned many lessons, and felt I was ready to implement a new accountability strategy for I had developed a strong supporting cast in real life to keep me accountable. Alas, a back injury and a "layoff" crumbled all my plans. I am recovered from both now, more or less. In October, I started a new job only three weeks after my old one ended. The growing pains are over and now I feel entrenched in my new world. In October and November, I took a lot of time off from fitness to allow my back to heal. In December, I started physical therapy to strengthen my back. I have occasional flare ups, but for the most part, I have my body functioning like its old self. Well, an out-of-shape and over-weight old self. Today, I am wrapping up my last physical therapy session. It is like I am back at square one, or Level 1 for my character here. But it is not like my character died and I have a new one. My knowledge and experience is retained. Instead of hitting the reset button, I'll jump to World 2 complete with new challenges and obstacles. Old foes may come back, but they will require new techniques to defeat them. I am still a Jedi in training, learning from the old masters, unlearning what I have learned, practicing the new techniques, and improving daily. Challenge Lesson: "Ready are you? What know you of ready? For eight hundred years have I trained Jedi. My own counsel will I keep on who is to be trained. A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind. This one a long time have I watched. All his life has he looked away... to the future, to the horizon. Never his mind on where he was. Hmm? What he was doing. Hmph. Adventure. Heh. Excitement. Heh. A Jedi craves not these things. You are reckless." - Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back [emphasis mine] Last challenge, I discussed commitment a bit analyzing the "Do or do not" quote from Yoda eliminating "Try" from my vocabulary. This challenge, I take another look at commitment in regards to seriousness for Jedi training and applying it to real life. Yoda says specifically, "A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind." (bold above) There is no joking or tomfoolery when it comes to Jedi. Being a Jedi is serious business with serious consequences for not taking it seriously. In Star Wars, it is a matter of life or death for the whole rebellion if Luke Skywalker was not paying enough attention during his failure in the cave. For a Jedi in Star Wars, commitment to training and Jedi ideals comes before all else, even a Jedi's friends. Yoda demands that Luke stay at Dagobah and complete his training instead of rushing off to save his friends from Darth Vader. "If you honor what they fight for" Yoda says. By going off to save his friends, Luke endangered everything the Rebellion had accomplished and would accomplish in the future, because he was their last hope of defeating the Emperor. Only with Luke fully trained as a Jedi could the Rebellion destroy the Emperor and put an end to his tyranny. Luke is not well prepared for facing off with Darth Vader, but his fortitude in the light side of the Force (through the love for his friends) is better than Yoda and Obi-Wan realized. Luke survives and returns to complete his training keeping his promise to Yoda and Obi-Wan, keeping his commitment to the Rebellion, the Jedi, and the Light side of the Force. It is tricky to analyze and understand peoples motives for keeping committed to something. For me, my commitment to Toastmasters is three-fold. I have a deep desire to continue to improve and discover myself. Toastmasters gives me that opportunity in a variety of ways. I have a deep desire to impact the lives of others in a positive way, influencing them to improve themselves and reach their highest potential. Toastmasters gives me the opportunity to coach and mentor people in a variety of ways while watching them grow as individuals. Lastly, I developed the worst fear of public speaking through many traumatic embarrassing experiences, where Toastmasters helped me get over it and will continue to ensure I am never that scared person again. For other Toastmasters, I am still searching for their why to help hook them in and keep their commitment. I have decided that each Toastmaster can use the stage to find their why for other things. By writing and giving speeches, a Toastmasters will have to look at themselves and their genuine feelings on subjects. Sure, presenting facts is easy, but defending your personal opinion or belief in front of a crowd calls for a deep commitment to those opinions or beliefs. If you don't feel strongly for something, then it will be difficult to be confident in your stance and persuasive in your speech. However, if you have passion for something, a deep commitment, a most serious mind, then you will speak with enthusiasm and excitement. That enthusiasm and excitement is contagious. It will infect the audience, grab their attention, and influence them towards your opinions or beliefs, facts be damned. By finding these passions, beliefs, and opinions which one is most committed and excited for, the individual will discover who they are underneath the frightened and embarrassed outer shell sheltering us from the potential thoughts and actions of others. Find your voice, find your confidence. The deepest commitment is something where tomfoolery is unacceptable. It is where passion and enthusiasm reside. With a deep commitment, mountains can be moved. My Main Quest and Mission: My mission is to be the best Jedi I can be. My main quest is always to enhance my overall health, fitness, and knowledge to be prepared for whatever challenges life could throw at me. As a Jedi, I need to be able to help people, whether that is a life threatening situation or just a charitable one. There is no boss level in Jedi training, there is only tomorrow. World 2 Level 5 Challenge: FITNESS: Work Up a Sweat - 500 minutes of conditioning training for the entire challenge. DEX +2, STA +3 The weekly plan is a minimum of three 30 minute tabata runs with Pokémon Go, plus plenty of walking, hiking, or other activities. I crushed my goal last challenge, but my family has returned home. They throw a wrench in all plans I make for evenings and weekends. Stretch and Strengthen - 520 minutes of exercises and stretches for the entire challenge. STR +2, DEX +1 The weekly plan includes 10 minutes of regular stretching each day, two 20 minute sessions of physical therapy exercises and 20 minutes of other strength training each week. DIET: Weight Control - Lose 4 lbs by end of challenge. Never weigh more than 167 lbs. CON +3 I'm starting at 163.2 lbs as of August 22nd. LIFE: Get Stuff Done - Complete 16 Tasks or Projects from any of the following areas: Toastmasters, Webmaster, Jedi Training, Work, House Work, Home Renovation, Auto Maintenance, Family Activities (to keep it diverse, no more than 3 from any one category) WIS +2, CHA +2 I'm still procrastinating, deciding to do the fun stuff first and delay the less fun stuff. I need a rewards system for getting the hard stuff done. For each week I don't procrastinate undesirable tasks (where I think "I'll do it later") where I overcome procrastination and do it or at least work on it, I'll reward myself with one game of Madden Saturday morning. If I procrastinated at all, then I have to give up my morning to working on something I procrastinated. This plan won't influence my goal grade, but it will give me incentive to do all the things, instead of just the fun ones.

Hi Rangers! After a month off, I'm back and ready to get stuff done. I'm focusing on 3 things this challenge: Core, and mobility from my hips to my shoulders. 2000 sit-ups by the end of the challenge. That's 500/wk, or 100/day for 5 days/wk. GHD's count as double! 8-minute Abs must be subb'd at least 1 day/wk NO BINGES for the next few weeks! I have dealt with disordered eating, and it's sort of like having been an addict. You always have to be on your guard for relapses. I've gotten tons better in the past several years, and my bf has helped so much with with me giving permission to eat and also questions me when I know I'm at risk. Work on my French. I'm going to do something every day. My bf's little sister and I were doing once-a-week French practice, and putting together projects for that in conjunction with Coffee Break French was excellent. She starts school in a few weeks, but at least we'll have a little time to practice together! Finally, I need to stay on track, and one of the best ways of doing that is to stay plugged in. 5 posts in my own thread, 5 posts in someone else's thread every week. Best of luck to everyone in their challenge! May the Force be with you!

Hello Fellow Rangers! Just sticking this here as a bookmark. I feel like my last challenge was good but there's plenty of room to build on!

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.... This challenge is all about rolling up the positive changes I made last month and keeping the good work going. I'm mostly focused on exercise this challenge, because I want to get my body as fit as possible for pregnancy, whenever that happens. My whole family joined a gym this week, and I want to be the cheerleader who gets everyone going regularly! I'm excited to get to workout with barbells and go to yoga classes again, and to workout with my husband. Plus, I started playing Pokémon Go, and walking and biking have never been quite this enjoyable! I want to take this inertia and transform it into a habit of movement and positive energy. And who better to symbolize that than the most upbeat bot in the galaxy? ○◍○◍ Movement (2 STA, 2 STR, 2 DEX) ◍○◍○ Sometimes you're rolling through the never-ending desert of Jakku. Sometimes you have to do some heavy lifting to make sure your ace pilot doesn't crash his X-Wing while trying to take down the Starkiller. Sometimes you have to sprint after that thief who definitely took your master's jacket! I’m using the Primal Blueprint Fitness Pyramid to guide my exercise this challenge. I’m focusing on being more agile: anything goes as long as I keep rolling. Examples of exercise are listed below each movement type. I’ll be recording time spent, with total time counted at the end of the challenge. Move Frequently at a Slow Pace (STA) Goal: 5 hours per week = 20 hours total Walking / Hiking Cycling Yoga Aerobics Class Lift Heavy Things (STR) Goal: 1.5 hours per week = 6 hours total Body Weight workouts Barbell/Dumbbell workouts Rock Climbing/Bouldering Sprint! (DEX) Goal: 10min/week = 40 minutes total Sprinting! Intense hills while cycling ○◍○◍ Fuel (2 CON) ◍○◍○ Astromech droids get off pretty easy - they fuel up for the job and aren't tempted by what's being served up in the mess hall. They follow their programming and get the job done. My programming is going to be: eat clean and low-carb. I'll be following the Primal Blueprint Carbohydrate Curve recommendation to stay between 50g – 100g of carbs a day. I’m using the Banting Green/Orange/Red lists as a guideline; each food has a cost in points: Green List: 0 pts (free!) Orange List: 2 pts per serving * Red List: 5 pts per serving * The servings on the orange list can be large (i.e. 1.5c of butternut squash) so a half portion is only 1 point Goal: 2 points per day, +5 points per week = 75 points total ○◍○◍ Bullet Journal (2 WIS) ◍○◍○ Yeah… I’m hopping on the BuJo train. Last challenge I started writing a to-do list for work every day and it was really helpful! So want to extend this to other parts of my life. I plan to make a daily list of all the tasks I need to get done at work, home, and otherwise. I earn 1 point per finished task. Goal: 5 points per day = 140 points Tracking Spreadsheet Reward I've never tried a reward system during a challenge before - I always felt like health was it's own reward / or worried that I'd just give myself the reward anyway, even if I failed. But I'm going to try it out this time and see if it helps motivate me to get better grades on this challenge. I'd like to get a little BB-8 toy or art for my office or home, but normally don't buy that kind of thing because it's a bit frivolous. But if I get all As for this challenge, I'm going to reward myself with some fun BB-8 or Star Wars swag! Decided! For each category I get an "A" in, I can pick up an adorable Force Awakens Tsum-Tsum: I have my eye on Rey, Poe, Finn, and BB-8 for sure. And they're only $5.95 each, so not going to break the bank!

Luke = my goals The Emperor = my bs Darth Vader = my bs detector Yes, I am totally doing a Star Wars challenge. Deal with it Anyhoo, this is a Star Wars themed challenge, because this morning I just got enough of my own BS. I had a horrible migraine this weekend, and I don't know exactly what it did to my brain, but I recognize the same amount of determination I had a couple of years ago when I started losing weight. You know, the knowledge that every day you either do things that get you towards your goals, or you don't. Either way, the time will pass, and it's up to you how you use it. It's half-way through the summer, and my weight hasn't gone down, nor have I done as much with my hobbies as I'd like to. It's time to cut the BS and get going! I was actually in the process of making some yogurt chocolate mess to have as extra to my usual breakfast, when I just caught myself going "what the efffff are you doing??" and, after struggling, I threw away the sweet, yet pointless calorie bomb I was making. (I very much dislike throwing food away, but forgive me for this once!) After that, eating's been on point today. I can do this. D8< I have two goals for this challenge. 1: USE THE FORCE You get things done by doing things. Every day, I decide on one activity I wish to accomplish, and get it done. These activities can be: art: draw, paint, sketch, write languages: study French, Russian or Swedish (extra to my daily Duolingo) exercise: yoga, biking, walking read I'm not allowed to open computer before achieving this daily goal - I'm spending way too much time online, anyway. 2: RESIST THE DARK SIDE Follow the meal plan - no thoughtless grocery shopping or snacking! I bought the guide by Mind Over Munch to give me some extra motivation. Time to put my money in good use I'm going to plan the meals for the whole week, make a list of needed ingredients, and follow that list. ** The migraine's after-effects aren't still completely over, and I feel somewhat sad, scared and lost. I've really started to reevaluate some things in my life - having stress that makes my hormones cause this kind of effects is something I can't have in my life. Gonna do some Mental Training now, and just relax It was a good day at work, and I'm travelling to Fort Foxy this weekend. Let's kick this challenge going!

STARPUCK SEEKS HER DESTINY IN A SCAVENGER WORLD It has been just a few months since our young heroine discovered her affinity for The Force and began down that fateful path. Having been a timid girl for most of her youth, the teachings of the dark side drew her attention quite thoroughly. There was strength and determination to be found in their ways; passion, strength, power, victory... chains broken by freeing herself from that which held her back. But not all was well with such wild, uncontrolled emotions and as she learned to master those passions, she found that an even greater need was yet unmet... Balance. Fate would have her find an ancient text, written and notated by many of the wisest of Jedi... The Jedi Path, an informative manual that outlined life as a Jedi from initiate up through the ranks of Master. She took to this journal and began to study it, and through it, found the Jedi Code and its tenets. Emotion, yet peace. Ignorance, yet knowledge. Passion, yet serenity. Chaos, yet harmony. Death, yet the Force. Now, as she strives to learn more about the code that goes against the teachings of the Sith that she had first studied, she finds herself being sent to distant worlds where she will have only her wits, and the Force, to guide her. Perhaps she will find the balance that she so desperately seeks... perhaps she will find a part of herself she did not even know could exist. Ahem! Was feeling a bit creative and so yeah, that happened! It totally ties in though, I promise! You see, I will be on my epic adventure vacation through all of Week 2 and so I needed some way to work that into, and around, the challenge. GOAL #1 - Emotion, yet Peace The whole trip is a push out of my comfort zone because this is the first BIG trip that I am not traveling with either my father or sister as back up/veteran travelers. AKA, the Padawan is out on her first mission where she alone is in charge. I believe that my natural tendency is toward anxiety, so I am going to make a conscious effort to find peace when I am beginning to get anxious. My form of meditation will be prayer. Because I'm really bad at this. Really really really bad. This will be a perfect chance to work on developing a new habit. So as not to overwhelm, and to keep things attainable, we're starting off with a very small goal. Prayer and Meditation: 3x/week + whenever anxious. GOAL #2 - Ignorance, yet Knowledge This one is fun! This is my food and eating goal. The ignorance side comes from the fact that I am NOT counting calories- ie, I am ignorant of my caloric intake! The yet Knowledge side pertains to my goal of making smart decisions and choosing healthy, real food 80% of the time or better. To steal a term from @Tanktimus the Encourager - I will allow myself so many variances per week. These are my 'living life' indulgences and to be enjoyed without guilt. Variances Schedule: Week 1 : 2 Vacation : 5 Week 3 : 2 Week 4 : 2 GOAL #3 - Passion, yet Serenity This has to do with all the things I am passionate about. Which, on any given day is enough to tire out four people. I often joke that I need shadow clones so I can do all that I want to do in a given day. Art is really progressing nicely and I want to maintain this new habit as it forms. I see progress and I've stuck to it even when it's been hard and frustrating. This is SO important for me. My RPG nights, and hockey, and everything else also has to find a place - so the goal is to find a place of serenity between the things I do, rather than overdo one or another and burn out. Continue Art Work: 3x / week (*vacation week allows exceptions) Step out of Routine, explore your world: 1x / week Examples: A more significant hike, a bike ride in a new area, meeting with friends instead of playing online, doing things that others like even if it's not your favorite thing, try new things, pull out an old hobby, etc. GOAL #4 - Chaos, yet Harmony This is my exercise goal. Basically. I am not going to pick how many times a week to do which thing or anything like that. It will be chaos! And yet I plan on relying on the habits I've been building over the last several months to just get things done. The goal is body harmony. Listening to my body, while still training in a variety of ways. I'll continue to strength train, adapting to what I can do while on vacation. I'll continue to run or bike ride to enjoy the summer weather and keep my body in motion. On days that I don't do too much, I will walk, or be otherwise active. In short, I will keep my body in motion, resting when it asks me for such, and try to find a balance. Force Move: 5x/week engage in any kind of activity that goes beyond sitting around. Force Rest: 1x/week engage in rest, active rest allowed. BONUS GOAL : Do a Star Wars themed photo shoot while at White Sands National Monument. Because... seriously... this place is perfect for it. Only hurdle is getting a costume put together in time!

Welcome back for another episode of the exciting Adventures of JediNickD! It was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away that I joined this site and started my first challenge. Upon my return, I have decided to revisit some of my challenge themes to turn them into lessons as I had been doing more recently. I feel it is a good way to reflect on my own learning and progress to write about and share these lessons, but I also have another objective. I am cataloging these lessons in a document which is now up to 136 pages. The plan is to use this document as a reference for my personal Jedi training and to pass on for my Padawan training. It isn't just my Nerd Fitness challenges. It includes every Jedi-related writing I have done, training I have worked through, and documents I have collected (which are not protected but have sources noted). So what is my story? As I said, I've been here before. I kicked a lot of butt progressing through 22 challenges since 2012, until middle of 2015. After struggling to maintain a presence here through the first half of 2015, I struck out on my own as I had conquered many obstacles here, learned many lessons, and felt I was ready to implement a new accountability strategy for I had developed a strong supporting cast in real life to keep me accountable. Alas, a back injury and a "layoff" crumbled all my plans. I am recovered from both now, more or less. In October, I started a new job only three weeks after my old one ended. The growing pains are over and now I feel entrenched in my new world. In October and November, I took a lot of time off from fitness to allow my back to heal. In December, I started physical therapy to strengthen my back. I have occasional flare ups, but for the most part, I have my body functioning like its old self. Well, an out-of-shape and over-weight old self. Today, I am wrapping up my last physical therapy session. It is like I am back at square one, or Level 1 for my character here. But it is not like my character died and I have a new one. My knowledge and experience is retained. Instead of hitting the reset button, I'll jump to World 2 complete with new challenges and obstacles. Old foes may come back, but they will require new techniques to defeat them. I am still a Jedi in training, learning from the old masters, unlearning what I have learned, practicing the new techniques, and improving daily. Challenge Lesson: "No. Try not. Do... or do not. There is no try." -Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back One of the most quoted (or misquoted) lines from Star Wars, it seems that everyone knows this line and what Yoda is saying. Training can not be tried. It is not an odd looking potato salad which your friend brought to your cook out. "I've never seen raisins in a potato salad, but I'll give it a try!" If you are training like that right now, you are likely also wondering why you fail to reach your goals. Training is something you DO. You've probably heard the phrase "Commitment is the road to success". Doing something with the mentality that you will succeed is a step towards committing to it. Trying something with the mentality that you may or may not succeed is a great way to miss your mark. Yoda tells us if trying is our mentality, then you might as well pack it in and go find something else to do. If you've seen the 1984 film "The Karate Kid", then you may be familiar with Mr. Miyagi saying these lines: “Man walk on road. Walk left side, safe. Walk right side, safe. Walk down middle, sooner or later, get squished just like grape. Here, Karate same thing. You karate do "yes," or karate do "no." You karate do "guess so," just like grape.” Miyagi teaches the same lesson to Daniel Russo with a great analogy towards Karate training. It is as if I grew up with this lesson beaten into my skull, as Nike athletic shoe brand's marketing slogan was "Just Do It." Whether you prefer Yoda, Miyagi, or Nike, I think we can all agree that doing will beat trying every day of the week. There are other interpretations of Yoda's famous lesson, where some discuss duality and others discuss causality, but for today I'll stick with just the training metaphor as it applies to where I am in my training. I find myself, as a Jedi Ranger, sampling all the trades and skills, overburdening myself to be a Jack-of-all-trades, but not being able to fully commit to any one thing. As a Jedi Ranger, my personal philosophy is to be a "Master-of-all-Trades" through balance and diversity. Below is a writing I did back in 2012, which I cleaned up a bit today. Diversity and balance go hand in hand. A Jedi seeks balance. To acquire balance a Jedi must be diverse. The Aptitude Maxim of my personal Jedi trainging says a Jedi needs to be highly proficient in many skills mentally and physically. Balance and diversity. A Jedi must taste all the flavors of the Jedi path in order to achieve balance within their own unique path. Being skilled in combat does not make a Jedi. Being sensitive and knowledgeable in the Force does not make a Jedi. Knowing the Philosophy, Maxims/Truisms, and the Code does not make a Jedi. Only being a student of all walks of the Jedi path can someone find balance and be a Jedi. If one is a student of all walks of the Jedi path, then does that not make their overall goal to be a "Master-of-all-Trades"? Master of one trade or "Jack of all Trades" are just not enough to prepare a Jedi properly. This is what the Aptitude Maxim is about. Of course, "Master-of-all-Trades" in a lifetime is impossible. A lifetime is hardly enough time to truly master any one skill, never mind all (even something as simple as walking and talking). But that does not mean it still should not be a Jedi's goal. With "Master-of-all-Trades" as my personal goal, when I come across something new, even if I'm not particularly interested in it, I pick it up, try it out. If it sparks more interest, then I continue with it as daily or weekly study until I master it (I DO it), then opt for monthly practice or study for maintenance. If my interest is not piqued at the time, then I decide to come back to it at another time storing up the information and my experience. It is not useful to force study on yourself towards a subject which does not interest you. Deciding to master the trades we are good at or the ones which interest us first does not negate the "Master-of-all-Trades" goal. Interest in other areas will grow with time in which case we can return to a subject we have stored. Of course, everyone has a specialty, but that only comes with where you begin to learn. At the age of 24, I had solidified my specialty in Electrical Engineering and Electromagnetics in Microstrip Patch Array Antenna Design. With many years ahead of me, I made it a professional goal to become proficient in other antenna types to make myself a bigger asset to my company and our customers. Three years later my extracurricular studies paid off allowing me the ability to transfer to another division within the company when business dwindled and cuts needed to be made. Specialties aren't just professional. We have hobbies and other interests which can become specialties. We follow our interests early in life to find these specialties. If a Jedi is diverse, then their interests will delve into other areas as life goes on. It is this "Master-of-all-Trades" goal which lead me to the online Jedi community to branch out my Jedi training and it is what lead me to NerdFitness, as well. It will continue to lead me to new and unusual places, like Pokémon Go catching them all. Like I said, "Master-of-all-Trades" is a goal, but not necessarily an achievable one. Realistically, you can’t learn everything, because life has its limitations, but you can damn well do everything in your power to get as close as you can. It is the mentality which is important. Strive for the unreachable and what you do reach will be outstanding. Aim for the sky and you will soar, but aim for the farthest star and who knows how much further you can go. When applying this goal, it is important not to stretch yourself too thin as to never master anything. Know your limitations and use proper time management to schedule your studies to optimize your time and energy. Diversify yourself and balance all aspects of life. You only get one shot at life so get the most out of it. My Main Quest and Mission: My mission is to be the best Jedi I can be. My main quest is always to enhance my overall health, fitness, and knowledge to be prepared for whatever challenges life could throw at me. As a Jedi, I need to be able to help people, whether that is a life threatening situation or just a charitable one. There is no boss level in Jedi training, there is only tomorrow. World 2 Level 4 Challenge: FITNESS: Work Up a Sweat - 320 minutes of conditioning training for the entire challenge. DEX +2, STA +2 The weekly plan is 60 minutes of racquetball on Friday and two 10 minute fast walks or runs. Fast walks can be replaced by jogging, swimming, biking, or rowing (haven't done since my injury, but may be ready to test) depending on what I feel like doing. Stretch and Strengthen - 440 minutes of exercises and stretches for the entire challenge. STR +2, DEX +1 The weekly plan includes 10 minutes of regular stretching each day, two 20 minute sessions of physical therapy exercises (therapist or gym) and 20 minutes of other strength training each week. DIET: Weight Control - Lose 4 lbs by end of challenge. Never weigh more than 170 lbs. Get measurements to compare to last year. CON +3 I'm starting at 165 lbs as of today. LIFE: Get Stuff Done - Complete 12 Tasks or Projects from any of the following areas: Toastmasters, Webmaster, Jedi Training, Work, House Work, Home Renovation, Auto Maintenance, Family Activities (to keep it diverse, no more than 3 from any one category) WIS +3, CHA +2 I seem to always have a lot on my plate these days with a bunch of started-but-not-finished projects and tasks, then other stuff lingering for me to crack open, but I keep putting off because of what I already have. I need to get some check-completes and build momentum for other projects. Less procrastinating and more doing.

THROUGH PASSION, I GAIN STRENGTH "It is our goal to be stronger, to achieve our potential and not rest upon our laurels. We are the seekers, not the shepherds." ―Yuthura Ban Only recently attuned to the Force and beginning to understand her powers, Starpuck begins to see the potential that comes with them. Having found freedom as she starts to break the chains that hold her, our young Force user now looks to delve deeper into the codes that direct the use of this great energy. For this challenge, the goals and schedules are going to have to be looser, and more flexible. Sunday the 12th (Week 1 if you start on Sunday) I am running a Sprint Triathalon. OMG. The end of Week 2, start of Week 3 I will be visiting friends in Canada. (Thur-Mon) And of course, Week 4 includes a super summer holiday of July 4th. Non-Specific Goals For Challenge Do not back out of the Triathalon! Finish Nia Shanks 12 Week Dumbbell/Bodyweight Program (Have weeks 11 & 12 to finish.) Buy new Nikon so I can learn it before my trip to New Mexico/Texas. GOAL #1 - "Through Strength I Gain Power" "Without strife, the victory has no meaning. Without strife, one does not advance. Without strife, there is only stagnation." This challenge will present many obstacles if I want to keep to my training schedule. While I've said I plan to be more flexible, that does not mean I will be lax. To account for trips and holidays, I must make sure I am meeting my goals on the rest of the non-eventful days. The busy schedule is my strife. And I will have victory even through it! Hockey 1-2x / week :: Total Required 5-7 Lift 2-3x / week :: Total Required 10-11 Run/Move/Active 1-2x / week :: Total Required 7-8 GOAL #2 - "The Force Shall Free me" "The Force is our servant and our master. Our teacher and our companion. A weapon and a tool. Know it and you know the universe. Master it and you master the universe. Strive for perfection and the Force shall reward you." This has to do with food stuff. Namely, calorie counting. There is a nice parallel to what Yuthura Ban said as it relates to my relationship with food and counting calories! It can be a tool or a weapon with me... a weapon that hurts myself. The goal here is to aim for keeping on track (perfection) when I can, and not obsess about it otherwise. *I* am its master. Not the other way around. Track Calories 6x / week :: Total Required :: 21 days Vacation = No Track, Just Smart 4 days :: Total Required 4 days (I'm gonna pretend that is a sandwich in front of her... so hard to find Star Wars gifs related to food.) GOAL #3 - "Embrace your Passions" "To think us creatures beyond the need of simple passions is a delusion." This has to do with art, photography, travel ... ie, hobbies, interests and passions. Arts 2-3x / week :: Total Required :: 10-11 LIFE GOAL - "Through Victory, my Chains are Broken" "One who has freed themselves from all restrictions has reached perfection… their potential fulfilled. Perfect strength, perfect power, perfect destiny." This one is to build on my last challenge of self affirmation and building up a better, more positive body and self image. It's time for the next step, and that step is a big one that leads OUTSIDE of my comfort zone. I have to think on this more, and figure out what sort of things will accomplish this, but that in and of itself is a prime example of how terrible I am at this. An easily stressed, anxiety ridden, likes her routine person, is going to intentionally step out of her comfort zone at least once a week and then share the experience on here. Comfort Zone Left 1x / week :: Total Required :: 4 I must unlearn my fears and step beyond my current boundaries.

I love to learn, and I always learn best by making mistakes (I'm not going to go into MAKER lingo and call it failure, because around here, failure is only when you give up). Having successfully kicked my work candy snacking habit with the tactics of the Rebellion (and some more brain wire knowledge), I've re-evaluated my basic healthy habits and have a simple plan to steadily make those changes stick. Here we go! Main Goal: To decrease body fat percentage by 5% through good habits and to build up a Ranger attitude of self-love and confidence. Eat Well: Consistently bring and consume lunch during the work week. Bonus points for having lunch at home during weekends. Sleep Well: Alarm times for challenge: Week 1 - 6:30am; Week 2 - 6:20am; Week 3 - 6:10am; Week 4 - 6am. GET UP. Bonus points for getting up by 8am on weekends. Move Daily: Consistently go to class twice a week (Monday and Wednesday). Bonus points for attending samba classes, open gym Fridays, and any extra classes. Love Daily: Journal daily, including food, sleep, and activity logs. Bonus points for sharing logs on the battle log (minus the Dear Diary stuff). That about sums it up. See? It can be easy! And to embrace my authentic self, here is some Star Wars funnies! Because it can't be one of my threads without Star Wars OR funnies.

"Through strength, my chains are broken..." Goal #1 - Train the Body "Through Passion I Gain Strength" - Continue training for functional strength and general fitness and performance. Strength Train 3X / Week Move 3X / Week Hockey 1-2 / Week Goal #2 - Fuel the Body "Through Strength I Gain Power" - Continue data gathering to dial in my specific dietary needs. Fuss with numbers less; stop worrying about how many calories I am burning with every walk, run, hockey, session. Eat a predetermined amount of calories per day and see what happens. Adjust based off of results. Weeks Zero & 1 : 1600 calories / day Weeks 2 & 3 : TBD Week 4 : TBD. Goal #3 - Free the Mind "Through Power I gain Victory, Through Victory My Chains are Broken" - Build up my mental and emotional fortitude so I can more easily overcome fears and defend against negativity. Post a positive thought, comment, revelation about myself daily. Share a pic with a body positive comment 1X / Week Goal #4 - Express Emotions & Practice Passions "The Force Shall Free Me" - Do things that bring me joy and happiness. Explore my creative side and take pleasure in the journey of learning and progressing. Continue practicing art / digital art - aiming for 3X / Week Work on photography- trip coming up and I want to get some good pics. Extra Life Goal : Complete Apprentice Training I will be taking a trip at the end of July which I would like to attempt a mountain hike on. I am not great with edges when heights are involved, and this will be an 8 mile round trip hike, with an elevation gain of almost 3000' in the first 3 miles. It will also be the middle of summer, in the Chihuahan Desert. In order to prepare for this I am going to start doing weighted practice hikes. With pictures! Because that will also help my photography goal. A little bit on the theme choice... This past October, my Sunday night gaming group made the switch to Star Wars Force & Destiny. Now, if we go way back, you'll come to discover that Star Wars was my very first Nerd fandom as a child. At age 5, I wanted nothing to do with Barbies or dolls, but everything to do with getting those awesome speeders for my Star Wars figures and ... oh, the Ewok Village??! YES PLEASE. As I've been reintroduced to this world and its lore, I've found myself really drawn into it again. It may seem a little ... dark side, sure. But rest assured, I've no intention of blowing up planets or anything. I just need to embrace my emotions and follow my passions, and well, those fuddy duddy Jedi aren't into that sort of thing. I have a lot of negative voices in my life- many don't even mean to be negative, but I am surrounded by a chorus of 'For your age,' 'you're not so young any more', 'you can't keep doing this, you're pushing 40' etc etc. Then add in my own voice about how I should look, what size I should be, how I am failing this, or suck at that, can't do this. It needs to stop!! And, the Sith Code seems better suited to guiding my path in that endeavor.

Current stats: Age: 48 Weight - 208.1 Body Fat Percentage - 38.3% Add them all together and what do you get? Motivation to participate in my first Nerd Fitness Challenge. I've assembled my gear - no need to spend any more money. Don't have it to spend if truth be told. What I have on hand will have to do; no excuses that way. Anyway, my gear: shoes clothes FitBit laptop internet connection Nerd Fitness Yoga program (downloaded and ready to roll) HDMI cable so I can hook the laptop up to the TV food (relatively good stuff, gotta watch it on the carb intake, reduce my sauces, that kind of thing) body (can't go anywhere without it, lol) set of dumbbells desire to no longer be built like a couch potato My Yoda? Well, I'm looking at you Steve, lol...anyway...since this is my first challenge, I'm looking to set the foundation from which I'll rise to meet future challenges. In other words, I must begin to condition my body, mind, and spirit; learn to use the Force in a positive way, avoiding The Dark Side and it's delicious cookies ;-). Body: I'm going for fit and flexible, muscled, strong and injury resistant. I want strength, endurance, and balance. So for this challenge, I'm going for a mix of Yoga, body weight training, and walking. Challenge goal - Exercise 27 days: walk three times a day (one of those has to be a mile minimum); body weight routine (push-ups & squats) three times a week, Yoga three times a week. Challenge goal - Cook and eat minimum 80 meals (out of 3 meals / day / 30 days); drink 16 ozs. water with every meal. Eat foods as close to their 'raw' state as possible. Little to no sauces or spreads. Honey over sugars, naturally sweet over everything. Grown instead of processed; nothing that comes already cooked or prepared, in a bag. Little to no FRIED anything, going for baked, steamed, grilled or sauteed. *REWARD - at the end of each week, the money I didn't spend on eating out (which averages around $60 a week!!) will go in a special savings account. At the end of the challenge, I'm going to finally sign up for Nerd Fitness Academy :-) and buy myself a fun outfit to wear on my birthday in June. The rest of the money will stay in savings to go toward Camp Nerd Fitness next year. Mind: Get back into my creativity; tapping into the excitement of learning something new. Strengthen the muscle that is my brain. Challenge goal - Portuguese: practice my basic phrases for five minutes each day. Challenge goal - Word games and vocabulary study: pick up a puzzle book, spend an hour on the weekends doing crosswords, logic puzzles, word scrambles, etc. Look up all words I'm not familiar with and use them in my current novel draft. Spirit: Obviously, need to 'reawaken the Force' within. Challenge goal - Meditate for a minimum of five minutes in the morning and evening every day. Even though the challenge doesn't officially start until Sunday, I kicked things off yesterday: walk 1 - 9:05 AM walk 2 - 2:27 PM walk 3 - 4:25 PM, 1.3 miles push-ups - 2 squats - 2 dinner at home (not the healthiest meal but not too, too bad) I've got quite a ways to go to meet my challenge goals, but like Yoda says...

The theme is Star Wars / Mandalorians since my primary fitness motivation right now is my Mandalorian costume build. I feel a bit guilty every time I look at my helmet, it reminds me that I need to get back to shedding some pounds. Ok, so some of you may know that my last challenge didn't go very well. I've been trying the same general things for the last few challenges and, aside from the Whole 30, most of them aren't working out as I would like. My plan this time around is to mix things up a bit and structure things differently. I now have an overall 'points system' and have allocated possible points for completing various tasks. Points are generally done based on the difficulty of the task or the amount of time required to complete it, however sometimes the perceived difficulty was affected by my known reluctance to do something, was related to consistency, or just designed to encourage general motivation for prioritizing certain things. 1. Prepare for Battle - Foundational Fitness For the duration of this challenge, I will be working my way through the Darebee Age of Pandora Program. I have specifically chosen this because it requires a more rigid workout schedule (and this seems to be where I am struggling most). Modifications will be made as needed to accommodate my cardiac condition. Mostly this means that lots of isometric exercises are off the table and need to be subbed for other options. Apparently some people do more than one of these workouts in a day... If I think I can do it, I am allowed to do this also in order to accumulate more points. Point System Per workout - 2 points + extra .5 points for each increasing level of difficulty 2. Fit into the Smugglers Compartment - Become more Flexible Since biking consistently was turning into a huge fail, I'm replacing my second fitness category with a series of options. I may only do one of these repeatedly, or I may dabble. We shall see. This is more about encouraging fitness related activities of some kind than actually developing a growing skill set in one area. Possible Points Biking for 30+ minutes - 2 Stretching for 5 minutes - .5 pts Doing a zombies run mission - 2 Extra Darebee workout/stretching exercise/weapons practice - 2 pts + extra .5 points for each increasing level of difficulty Fencing Practice - 3 3. Eat Like a Warrior I had great success with the Whole 30 two challenges ago, and then consumed far too much ice cream over the last month. My diet is still far better than it has been in a long time, however I need to pay close attention to my habits and continue to encourage healthy eating. I'm sticking with Paleo for this challenge. Points are all or nothing for each day. If I slip up and eat a cookie, I don't get points for that day. Hopefully, this will curb my desire to eat well all day long and then have cake for dessert. There will be one exception to this rule: anything that came in my latest care package (mostly chocolate) is fair game and does not break this rule. I also expect that it may take me 2-3 days before these food goals are achievable since my fridge is completely empty and I need to go grocery shopping/meal prep. I'm also turning 21 this challenge. This means that there will most definitely be some days where I will not be eating 100% paleo. Possible Points Proper eating - 1 pt Food Journal - 1 pt 4.. Maintain the Starship - Life Goal (broken into Mini Goals) Challenge Mini-Goals and Related Points: Costume Related Finish my Mandalorian helmet - 5pts Finish my holster setup - 3pts Complete the belt rig - 3pts Assemble girth belt - 2pts Other Submit my Capstone report on time - 5pts (one time only) 1 hour room/apartment cleaning - 2pts Complete major assignments more than 36 hours in advance - 1pt Daily update - 1/4 points Apply to an internship - 1 pt Acquire internship - 5 points This challenge is all or nothing, so the progress bar is a sum of all points, in all categories, so far. I'm placing the minimum at 125 points since I believe this is roughly the point where I would have to do the majority of my workouts, lots of random exercise activities, eat properly, and accomplish at least a few of my life goals. If I reach 175 points, I will consider some type of prize. Progress Bar (first 100 points) - Updated on 4/1 [progress=green]2[progress] Still updating and adjusting things.

I'll once again be training like a Jedi. Blast Shields and Wookiees are optional. Quest 1. Hand Balancing. +2 DEX Continuing from the last challenge, I'll be working on hand balancing skills with the eventual goal of doing a handstand. Last time I did a pretty good job with Crow Pose, so this challenge I'll be carrying that momentum through. For Quest 1 I will practice hand balancing (Crow Pose, Scale Pose, and Wall Planks) every day. Quest 2. Force Push(up). +3 STA, +1 STR That's right, more Pushups! As with my previous challenges, I'll be working towards my goal of 100 pushups in five sets. Last challenge I got to 82, which is making the end goal feel tantalisingly close. This time I'm stepping it up and going for a total 91 reps in five sets. I incorporate a Pushup test into my workouts once a week. Quest 3. Force Pull. +3 STR No, Kylo. You may not have that saber. My force push is moving along, but my force pulling abilities could do with some work. Last challenge I increased my Chin-up Flex Hold time to 27 seconds, now I'll be working on increasing my reps. My current AMRAP is 6 good Chinups, this challenge I aim to complete 10 Chin-ups with good form. Quest 4. Creating a Holocron. +1 WIS A Holocron is a mystical object that Force users create in order to store their knowledge and wisdom. I'm no Jedi Master, but I think it's a good idea to start recording and taking notes on my workouts. As I did last time, I will use this challenge thread to keep track of my workouts, including notes on progression (or lack thereof). Oh, and I'll be needing a theme song.. Grading A (100%), B (75%), C (50%), D (25%), F (0%)

Time to turn my back on The Empire once again! I need to get my nutrition in order, so this challenge will be all about sorting out my diet, which is in terrible shape at the moment. Goals: 1. Get help to setup a nutrition plan and execute it 2. Cold turkey on video games for this challenge at least. That's it for now, it will involves sub goals I expect which I'll update later once I have the plan. I'm going to setup a session with a nutritionist and ask for a 4 week food plan.Hopefully I can get a session sorted out this week.

Welcome back for another episode of the exciting Adventures of JediNickD! It seems like forever ago that I joined this site and started my first challenge. Upon my return, I have decided to revisit some of my challenge themes to turn them into lessons as I have been doing more recently. I feel it is a good way to reflect on my own learning and progress to write about and share these lessons, but I also have another objective. I am cataloging these lessons in a document which is now up to 126 pages. The plan is to use this document as a reference for my personal Jedi training and to pass on for my Padawan training. It isn't just my Nerd Fitness challenges. It includes every Jedi-related writing I have done, training I have worked through, and documents I have collected (which are not protected but have sources noted). So what is my story? Well, I’ve been here before. I kicked a lot of butt progressing through 22 challenges since 2012, until middle of 2015. After struggling to maintain a presence here through the first half of 2015, I struck out on my own as I had conquered many obstacles here, learned many lessons, and felt I was ready to implement a new accountability strategy for I had developed a strong supporting cast in real life to keep me accountable. Alas, a back injury and a "layoff" crumbled all my plans. I am on the road to recovery for both. In October, I started a new job only three weeks after my old one ended. The growing pains are over and now I feel entrenched in my new world. In October and November, I took a lot of time off from fitness to allow my back to heal. In December, I started physical therapy to strengthen my back. I have occasional flare ups, but for the most part, I have my body functioning like its old self. Well, an out-of-shape and over-weight old self. It is like I am back at square one, or Level 1 for my character here. But it is not like my character died and I have a new one. My knowledge and experience is retained. Instead of hitting the reset button, I'll jump to World 2 complete with new challenges and obstacles. Old foes may come back, but they will require new techniques to defeat them. I am still a Jedi in training, learning from the old masters, studying the new practices, and constantly improving. Challenge Lesson: "Your focus determines your reality." Qui-Gon Jinn, Jedi Master, drops this very lesson on Anakin Skywalker in The Phantom Menace when he said, "Always remember, your focus determines your reality." A few years ago, I went on travel for work to Lakehurst, New Jersey. In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the hotels were either booked with displaced people or FEMA workers. Lucky for me, I have a friend in the area unaffected by the storm and with his beer fridge fully stocked! It’s not the Government per diem hotel I’m used to with a king-sized bed, HD TV, and access to a gym and pool. Instead, I sleep on a pull-out couch sharing the room with a crated dog. Later in the night, I find I also share the bed with a cat, who decided to make me head a nice pillow. Since the cat woke me up, I decide to roll over to check the time: 2:13. Facing the kitchen doorway now, I see a light coming from an open refrigerator. There is nobody there, but its contents are distributed all over the floor. Then, a pair of bare feet inch out of the fridge followed by the rest of a young boy, my friend’s youngest son Harry. The boy freezes upon seeing me. We stare at each other with me trying to figure out why the boy has emptied the fridge on the floor, while the boy appears to be trying to figure out an explanation. “What are you doing?†“You should see this.†“See what?†“The back of the fridge… come over here.†Being careful not to step on any of the precariously stacked food, I move toward the fridge. There appears to be an open door inside. Not a butter door or freezer door… more like a closet door. I get closer and lean to see inside. “There is a zoo inside your fridge!†“Shhh! You’ll wake everyone.†“Why is there a zoo inside your fridge?†Harry shrugs his shoulders at the question and crawls inside. I shrug my shoulders and follow. The first zoo animal we see is a purple gorilla. “Whatever you do… do not touch the purple gorilla.†“Huh?†“DON’T TOUCH THE PURPLE GORILLA!†“Alright, alright. I got it.†“Ok. I’m going to bed. Can you clean up for me?†“Whatever, kid, I’m going in.†And with that, I go into the zoo and Harry goes into the kitchen on his way to bed. I look over the animals, which seem pretty normal except for exceptional colors. The purple gorilla appears docile and friendly. I briefly ponder Harry’s warning as I continue down a path leading to the rest of the zoo. Losing track of time as I view all the animals, I eventually find my way back to the gorilla, which is now asleep. While looking at the pleasant, sleeping gorilla, I remember how docile and friendly it was. I wonder, “What could Harry possibly be worried about?†I reach through the bars, hesitate for a moment, and pet the gorilla’s fluffy purple fur. Not a twitch or a tremble from the animal. I pull my hand away and head for the door. Not two steps into my stride, that I hear an earsplitting roar from behind me. I turn to see an angry, fierce gorilla roaring while showing his long, sharp teeth. I stumble backwards a little bit before I realize that the beast is in a cage, but not for long. The animal displays incredible strength bending the iron bars apart like they were clay. I scream an expletive and run for the door, diving through and landing face first in a leftover apple pie. Standing up quickly, I turn to run to the living room tripping over a jar of pickles, then regaining my balance by stepping into a half-eaten cake, but my next step is on top of a carton of milk which just explodes spilling milk and me all over floor. Not waiting to see if the gorilla will follow me through the door, I clamor to my feet, stumble into the living room, and climb under the pull-out bed. I hear the purple gorilla stomp into the living room in a huff followed by the sound of furniture being tossed around. Then silence. I listen intently. The convertible couch lifts off the floor and flies across the room revealing the huge, monstrous gorilla. I lock eyes with the purple beast as I lie on floor, quivering and crying as I await my death. The gorilla roars like thunder pounding its chest. Then it reaches for me with one large open hand… and pats me on the head. “Tag, you’re it.†Remember, your focus determines your reality. Our minds establish routines and habits based on what we experience. Human instinct is to believe what we see, but we will also interpret what we think we see and what we expect to see. Reality isn’t always what we think it is or expect it to be. People used to think that the world was flat, the Earth was at the center of the universe, and the moon was made out of cheese. Scientific breakthroughs are found by changing a perception through a very controlled experiment to test a hypothesis. There is a story about six blind men who were asked to determine what an elephant looked like by feeling different parts of the elephant's body. One feels a leg says it’s is like a pillar; one feels the tail says it’s like a rope; one feels the trunk it’s like a tree branch; one feels the ear says it’s like a hand fan; one feels the belly it’s like a wall; and one feels the tusk says it’s like a solid pipe. Each is only experiencing a piece of the puzzle. Together, they can complete the puzzle. We get a follow-up lesson from Obi-Wan Kenobi in Return of the Jedi: In this part of the conversation, Obi-Wan is explaining how perception frames how you think and what you think. The things we believe are true have a foundation built from our perception or view. It is difficult for us to believe in anything without an experience to back it up whether it is first, second, or third hand. These beliefs give us a background for comparison, a springboard for decision making, and a basis for logic. If something appears true from one perceptive, but false from another, then one can encounter difficulty whether someone is hiding your family's past from you or whether you are counting squares in an IQ test puzzle. The difficulty is from seeing only a portion instead of the entire thing. There is a story about six blind men who were asked to determine what an elephant looked like by feeling different parts of the elephant's body. One feels a leg and says that it is like a pillar; one feels the tail and says that it’s like a rope; one feels the trunk and says that it’s like a tree branch; one feels the ear and says that it’s like a hand fan; one feels the belly and says that it’s like a wall; and one feels the tusk and says that it’s like a solid pipe. Each is only experiencing a piece of the puzzle. Together, they can complete the puzzle. I’ll let 1932 Nobel Prize winner Werner Heisenberg summarize my thoughts. “We have to remember that what we observe is not nature in itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning.†To understand any new concept or situation, search for the other perceptions or points of view. If you ask the same questions and use the same methods, then you should expect the same answers. Try something different, or even unusual, to get a better view on reality. There is a saying about not understanding until you've been in someone else's shoes. When you are confronted with an idea you do not understand or a problem which you cannot solve, try changing your shoes, because your perception determines your reality and reality is more than meets the eye. My Main Quest and Mission: My mission is to be the best Jedi I can be. My main quest is always to enhance my overall health, fitness, and knowledge to be prepared for whatever challenges life could throw at me. As a Jedi, I need to be able to help people, whether that is a life threatening situation or just a charitable one. There is no boss level in Jedi training, there is only tomorrow. World 2 Level 2 Challenge: FITNESS: Work Up a Sweat! – 340 minutes of conditioning training for the entire challenge. DEX +2, STA +2 The weekly plan is 60 minutes of racquetball on Friday and two 10 minute fast walks. I added an extra 20 minutes to work in. Fast walks can be replaced by jogging, swimming, biking, or rowing (haven't done since my injury, but may be ready to test) depending on what I feel like doing. Stretch and Strengthen – 700 minutes of exercises and stretches for the entire challenge. STR +2, DEX +1 The weekly plan includes 10 minutes of regular stretching each day, two 40 minute sessions of physical therapy exercises (therapist or gym) and 20 minutes of other strength training. This plan leaves me 20 minutes extra to account for. DIET:Weight Control - Lose 4 lbs by end of challenge. Never weigh more than 170 lbs. CON +3 I got below 170 lbs last challenge. I need to maintain that and continue to lose more. I'm giving myself a reward for getting this one. If I get both, then I'll buy myself a new Star Wars or NY Jets hoodie. If I don't get either, then I have to donate one old hoodie. I know it's not drastic, but it is a start. I have made progress. I haven't had a Dr. Pepper since 2/21. I'm not planning to stay away completely, but I am going to keep from drinking it regularly. I will see how many more days I can go without though. LIFE:Get Stuff Done - Complete 12 Tasks or Projects from any of the following areas: Toastmasters, Jedi Training, Work, House Work, Home Renovation, Auto Maintenance, Family Activities (to keep it diverse, no more than 3 from any one category) WIS +3, CHA +2 I have a lot on my plate with a bunch of started-but-not-finished projects and tasks, then other stuff lingering for me to crack, but I keep putting off because of what I already have. I need to get some check-completes and build momentum for other projects. Less procrastinating and more doing.

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away... Episode III THE JEDI PATH With the help of the Assassins, Starstuff has begun her Jedi training. Little does she know, there are agents of the DARK SIDE among the Assassins, as well. While Starstuff and her fellow Jedi Initiates strive to master the THREE PILLARS OF THE JEDI, the Sith are training, too... Main Quest: Prepare for the Initiate Trials Having gotten my basic fitness habits established, it's time to work on getting stronger, faster, and more agile. Because I've got a bunch of little things I'd like to get better at, I've combined them all in a theme-appropriate Initiate Trials quest list over on my character page. For anyone too lazy to click, I'm working toward milestones in upper body strength, flow staff, handstands, and my half marathon time. Speaking of half marathons, I might have said something crazy about not running any again until the Fall. Seven and a half months without a race? Who did I think I was kidding? I'll be running the El Sobrante Mother's Day Run Half Marathon in May. The First Pillar: The Force Goal 1: Keep up with my Force training I've got a pretty good thing going with my running and strength training schedule, and I want to maintain that, so here's what I need to do to meet this goal. Run five days a week, according to my half marathon training planAcademy Bodyweight Level 2 workouts three times a week, with 5 minutes of handstand practice for the "Bonus Level" portion15/30 50%50% The Second Pillar: Knowledge Life Goal: Add to the Jedi Archives I've been making a lot of progress lately in my fitness and flute playing, but I've also been neglecting my writing in a serious way. The first draft of this novel has just been sitting here, gathering dust for a couple months now, and that's no good at all. So, my life goal this time around is to spend 15 minutes every day editing my novel. They don't even have to be consecutive minutes, as long as I get them all in. 13/26 50%50% The Third Pillar: Self-Discipline Goal 2: Master my diet I've built a great foundation for my nutrition, and now it's time to bump it up to the next level. For this goal, I need to have a protein source and a vegetable in every meal. 13/26 50%50% Goal 3: Lightsaber practice I spent a little bit of last challenge playing with my staff, but now it's time to get serious learning some moves. For this goal, I need to spend fifteen minutes every day practicing moves from the beginner staff lessons on Home of Poi. As with my editing, these minutes do not need to be consecutive. A couple minutes here and there is fine as long as it's quality, focused practice for those couple minutes. 12/26 46%46%