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"Hello Guys and Girls... I'm back!" I just couldn't help myself... whenever I hear the words "I'm back" I think of the scene in Independence Day where the dad tells the aliens, "Hello Boys! I'm baaaack!" (2:08 in the clip) Luckily I'm not in the fight of my life, and there are no aliens. There are also the iconic words of Arnold, "I'll be back." Here is a compilation if you can't remember them. Any similar sentiments in other movies/scenes you can think of? Don't be shy, share them here. Didn't really plan on this being the theme, but *shrug* it is as good as any to start a challenge again after being off Nerd Fitness for about a year. I took a break from a lot of things though. For as much as there were changes a lot stayed the same however. We're still homeschooling; I'm still shooting; I never got around to sword training but hoping to change that now... We can catch up during the challenge ahead, because you know I like chatting and using this as a sort of diary to boot. I would really like to catch up with you. So the deal behind my training is (there might be smidges of t.m.i. in the paragraph ahead - be warned): I do it to keep strong and be able to keep up with two teenager boys, as well as join hubby on longer shooting days and just enjoy life in general with him/them. Obviously if I'm fit, strong, healthy and can think, I can tackle life a whole lot better. Certain times I'm not going to feel like training, and that's ok, but I would prefer to get something in, rather than nothing. Then again, that time of the month I often skip the whole week as I seem to be going into peri-menopause, and although I don't have a lot of symptoms, what I have is enough, I don't have to force myself through exercise when I'm not up to it. I don't have to prove anything to anyone, and I'm comfortable in my own skin now. Strength Training: Mondays: Warm Up: Star Jumps 20x High Knees X Elbows 20x Training: Deadlifts 3x5 @ 24kg; 2x5 @ 30kg; 1x5 @ 34kg (this set is a new addition) The Arnold Presses and Skull Crushers form a mini-circuit. I do 5 of each for 3 sets. So 5 AP's followed directly with SC's as one set. Arnold Presses (huh, the video above fits right in now) 2x5kg db Skull Crushers (standing with dumbbell above my head) 1x5kg db Side Lunges (are on their own - not part of a circuit) 2x10 Pushups (knees at this stage) and Mountain Climbers also form a mini-circuit. I do 5 PU's, followed directly with 10 MC's (each leg 10) as one set. I do this for 3 sets. Pushups (knees are fine if I'm tired) 5x Mountain Climbers (each leg) 10x Cool Down: Hang at least 1x5sec, but try for more. This is more to stretch my back than anything else. Downward Dog walkout-cobra stretch-walkin-up Sit-Twist stretch Fridays: Warm Up: Star Jumps 20x High Knees X Elbows 20x Training: Walking Lunges (preferably outside) with Farmer's Carry: 2x10 @ 2x5kg db Dumbbell Halo's (straight arms above my head): 2x10 @ 1x5kg db Tire Jump Squats (or just broad jump squats depending on the weather) 1x10 Scapular Pulls 1x5 Cool Down: Downward Dog walkout-cobra stretch-walkin-up Sit-Twist stretch Sword Training: I can't remember whether I've bought the decorative sword before I left NF, but I bought a Stainless Steel sabre like sword for a steal at a local security shop. Rocco will be helping me with footwork and other movements, as well as teach me how to duel. *Insert big eyes and one very wary mom* He is still taking fencing lessons and although his epeé training (attacks and parries) is a lot different than "old military style sabre fencing", the footwork and some things are the same. He is so looking forward to us training together on a Saturday. I'm... carefully optimistic with a dash of apprehension 🤔. In later months I'm going to mix the "military sabre" with a bit of "Han Dao". I've worked out a rough 34 week plan in general, but herewith the first 4-5 weeks. Pretty mundane. I'm going to train left and right to balance things out as much as I can. Don't know if I can do it, or will just confuse myself. Saturdays: One Handed Cut & Thrust Sword Warm Up: Star Jumps 20x Scabbard: unsheathe / sheathe (safely) 20x Footwork: Fwd/Back steps 20x Step Lunge 10x Advanced Lunge 10x Basics: Wrist Circles (small to big to small - clockwise - anticlockwise) 20x Wrist Waggles (left to right; up and down) 20x Cuts 1 and 2 (but try the wrap the brain technique from Han Dao) 20x each I think that's it.

Meet 90 strangers in 30-ish days As in https://www.reddit.com/r/socialskills/comments/1hv1ut/former_shy_here_i_recently_did_a_30day_social/ The when and how are still open. Paying attention, making an effort and visiting places ought to work. Online discussions also count, if they're audio or video calls. Other goals are from my battle log, to which I will also post my progress. (Trying to keep things simple.) http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/75226-a-long-chain-instead-of-snippets-fearkiller/ 1) A plan for the remaining schoolwork. Assign due dates for courses, mark them on a calendar sheet on the wall, create baby steps, and start working. 2) 1 drawing a day. Small everyday objects, tackling bigger things as I develop skill. 3) Zen Habits 1000 cuts, 3 things a day. 4) Gratitude statements every day.

Hi everyone and sorry for the long inactivity. Why was I gone? So for those of you who don't know... In the past (also explained in the challenges) I have seriously been struggling with myself. I simply don't feel happy, I went to a psychologist and she found I have more than just a depression, which sounded very eerie, but ends up there's something to do about it. But I felt like I was in a very deep pit that I couldn't climb out of. Then I got a badly bruised rib, I felt even more horrible... Then I went on holiday and whatnot. Basically, things were horrible and busy at the same time, which is why I couldn't find the energy or time to do a challenge. But here I am, back in business, hoping I can do something again here. Why am I here? Honestly... I feel I kind of >have to< be here, like I will let people down if I'm not..? But of course I am also here for myself. I want to make a change to my life style, as I have tried many times before, but simply failed, or did a half assed job. Even in the challenges here. I started to notice I have to make my challenges smaller, take baby steps, because when I want too much I lose my energy and motivation, I get stressed, I start binge eating and feeling friggin' horrible about it afterwards, I feel like I can't do anything... Basically I get this mental shit storm that seems to go on and on forever. BUT I want to prove to myself that if I take baby steps I don't have to go through that horribleness again. I want to allow myself to make mistakes. I want to be nicer to myself, comfort myself, say that it's okay and that it's going to be alright... That my feelings are legit, but that I am strong enough to crawl back to feeling better. But I can't do that alone... Which is the real reason why I'm here. I'm here for you guys, because I need you. I'm going to be very open about this: I have felt suicidal for a longer time... Never acted upon it, though. And finally these horrible thoughts cross my mind less and less, which is great, but I do have my fallbacks at times, where I just don't know what to do. Where I don't have energy, not even to do grocery shopping or clean my house, or wash my hair... It's real bad. Previously I've not been so open about this, but I realise I have to be, so people understand my situation slightly better. And I hope that, when I am in such a horrible place in my mind, I will be brave enough to post it here and ask for support. What will I do? Here we come to the part where I explain my challenge. Basically I want to lose weight, but I can't seem to get it done. I don't have the mental strength to stay away from biscuits and chocolate. So instead of trying to deny myself these things, I want to have a look at getting some healthy habits while still allowing myself to have biscuits and whatnot whenever I'm in a binge eating mood. I know right now I can't stop myself from doing such things, so I'm going to have to accept that it happens instead of beating myself up about it. But I can compensate a little bit with healthy habits, right? Habit #1 - Fruit for breakfast Well, it says it all. Previously I would either have sandwiches for breakfast and sometimes even biscuits, because it was the first thing lying around (from previous evening) and I'd think "Oh you know, I'll just finish that so it's out of the house" and next thing you know I'm already in the shop buying new biscuits... So it was never really out of the house. But if I stick to having fruit for breakfast as a rule, that should go better... Right? At least, I hope so. It may take away a little bit. And yes, I know fruits have sugar in them too, but I'm pretty sure eating fruit is less bad than eating chocolate covered oreo's for breakfast. Habit #2 - Squats Now there's a little story to this. On 9GAG (yes, that's right) I came across a wonderful inspirational picture. In the first place I thought "Haha, too long, not gonna read", but I guess I was too curious to actually let it go. And so I read the text on the picture. First reaction: But even though the text in this picture is directed towards men, it still did inspire me and so I commented on it. The OP was very nice to me and told me that he had lost 13 kg in 3 months through "intermittent fasting". I Googled it and found out that's nothing for me. xD And I was honest about that to him. But he also said I should do squats, that it helps and that it's good for your butt. Well, I already knew that, but there was something in the way he said it that I immediately did 20 squats. And later that night 25 more. And this morning another 25 squats. Man, I got inspired! So I want to do 25 squats every morning and every evening. It's not much, but it's something. It's better than doing nothing. 25 squats gives a bit of a burning sensation in my legs, but I don't get a muscle ache from it and I can easily take the time to do 25 squats. Habit #3 - Water Now, I've had water goals before, where I told myself I should drink at least 2L of water a day, or 1.5L or something. But I find it hard to keep track of that. I think I drink enough, but just in case I want to change this goal to something that's easier to keep track of, something smaller too. Every morning, before breakfast, I have to drink a glass of water. It's said to start up your system, to burn stuff, so who knows. It's worth a try, right? How do I measure my goals? Like in previous challenges I will make daily lists of goals I have to achieve. They will look like this: Week X - Day X - [day name] Glass of water - win/fail Fruit for breakfast - win/fail Morning squats - win/fail Evening squats - win/fail 3 wins per day means I've won that whole day. 4 wins per day means I get star status for that day. 5 star statuses in a week means I get to post a picture of a star for that week, to show off my awesomeness. Week 1 (win count = 5, star count = 3) Day 1 win * - Day 2 fail - Day 3 win * - Day 4 win * - Day 5 win - Day 6 win - Day 7 fail Week 2 (win count = 3, star count = 1) Day 8 win - Day 9 win * - Day 10 fail - Day 11 fail - Day 12 win - Day 13 fail - Day 14 fail Even with this challenge it's clear that this was a bad week for me... I struggled a lot this week, mentally. Week 3 Day 15 win - Day 16 win/fail - Day 17 win/fail - Day 18 win/fail - Day 19 win/fail - Day 20 win/fail - Day 21 win/fail Week 4 Day 22 win/fail - Day 23 win/fail - Day 24 win/fail - Day 25 win/fail - Day 26 win/fail - Day 27 win/fail - Day 28 win/fail Week 5 Day 29 win/fail - Day 30 win/fail - Day 31 win/fail - Day 32 win/fail - Day 33 win/fail - Day 34 win/fail - Day 35 win/fail Week 6 Day 36 win/fail - Day 37 win/fail - Day 38 win/fail - Day 39 win/fail - Day 40 win/fail - Day 41 win/fail - Day 42 win/fail

***This thread may slip to dark areas, like depression or suicidal thinking, so as a warning, it may shake things. And though I may sound harsh and judgemental, please remember, it's not towards you at all, but my inner things. I wouldn't think such things about anyone else <3*** I let things slip even more, to the point it starts to look really hopeless. Before, if I had did my best, and started crunching things, I would've been able to pull through the studies. Now, with another major paper not getting done, and two other assignments being due this week of the challenge, I'm nearly done for. I feel like I'm drifting in a river, floating gently, towards a waterfall. Until about a week ago, I tried to swim against the current, trying to finish schoolwork, at least trying to do something, though feeling worried and anxious. But now, I'm simply floating. Yes, I need to get the schoolwork that affects someone else's marks done, and then... I hope I can go. Not that fixing things is not possible: I could if I wanted to: focus in this moment, do the assignments, work on my shortcomings and faults, like procrastination, lack of sparks in my life, all that stuff. I feel it's too little and too late; that I would need so much more than I am now to do turn this around. I have no mental scars, like abuse or rape or anything major like that, just feel like a piece of sh*t, and that all that I have failed until now, and which I judge myself is a big pile of little pieces of gravel, and it all together is too much to bear. About suicide, so in spoilers: So, tl;dr My problems feel so big, I feel I don't want or can't solve, so I want to get rid of them. Now, I don't want to go like this: wasting my time away, nothing much to show after this life, finishing it half-baked.. All the little things, like hugs, and the rare occasions I've made someone's day, and when I've felt in peace and free, like moments with nature, or time spent with friends, it is encouraging. Things that have helped in the past: 1) The Zen Habits 1000 cuts Fearkiller, on 26 Feb 2014 - 10:46 PM, said: 200 points, 3-4 things a day. Adding that 5 min of streching, or every 5000 steps over the daily 10k I usually get, are worth one point. 2) Positive, beautiful, grateful things in my life (3 daily) http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/26507-3-things/ http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/24603-pvs-the-honorable-order-of-rebellious-appraising-yeomen/ Like those threads. And from the members, at least Liberator does this, whose gratitude statements are beautiful! Vnv nation, Assemblage 23, Rotersand... I am grateful for great music. 3) Due diligence - Seek out all the deadlines of assignments into one sheet, hang it to a wall, and decide how much I can do, and arrange the rest http://calnewport.com/blog/2011/11/11/if-youre-busy-youre-doing-something-wrong-the-surprisingly-relaxed-lives-of-elite-achievers/ Things that help - Leechblock - Firefox addons that blocks sites you want for a certain time. Reduces distraction and procrastination. Aiming to use it daily. - I have to stop worrying. I don't know yet how, maybe that's another goal. - Go to sleep at 10 pm, so the next day isn't such a grind.

I wish I'd gotten a letter like this the year I turned eleven. I did get something special that year - my glasses - but I can only fantasize about studying at Hogwarts. I can, however, also use the wizarding world as a great source of inspiration! Whether you've followed my previous challenges or not, jump aboard the Hogwarts express and know you're very welcome! This time I won't follow the "standard" challenge format. I believe it can work very well for many out there, but during the last challenges I've noticed that the feeling of failing comes across much stronger than any wins I might achieve during a challenge. I've never completed a challenge 100%, and since I have som level of inherent perfectionism it bothers me much more than it should. I still enjoy creating a challenge, but working for stat points doesn't seem to be enough for me. Too often my life gets in the way of my goals, and instead of just letting it go I feel bad for not achieving them. That's why I'll try to have looser goals this time around and won't decide on any stat point rewards or weekly quotas. I will probably still assign myself some stat points at the end of the challenge, but I will decide how they will be distributed when I know what I've done during the challenge. My goals and quests might fluctuate during the challenge, all depending on what life brings in my way during the following six weeks! For this challenge I split my quests into the Hogwarts subjects I deemed I'd most likely study at N.E.W.T. level. Herbology The study of magical and mundane plants and fungi. My eating habits are proving to be one of the hardest things to change. I didn't even know I had a subconscious picture of what a meal should look like before I a couple of weeks ago started wondering why I at the student restaurant put rice on my plate just to throw most of it away after I'd eaten. For my herbology lessons I want to find out if I have more of these subconscious eating habits that could be changed into healthier ones. I also want to incorporate more greens in my cooking at home and encourage myself to always get some salad with the lunch I eat on campus. Eating less carbs is also a plus. TL;DR: Eat more greens. Transfiguration The art of changing the form and appearance of an object. At N.E.W.T. level transfiguration, students are finally ready to start learning how to change one's own appearance. I'm very excited to see changes happening to my body, but I need more tools for it. I've already figured out that I like TRX and free weight exercises, but it's a sad fact that I haven't found a working setup for me yet. I've done a little of this, a little of that, but never really had a plan to stick to. Going to the gym without a plan isn't desirable as it ends up taking much longer than a prepared workout would. Ideally I'd hire a personal trainer, but in reality I don't have the money for that and don't have the time and energy right now to research a program that would work best for me. Until my time is freed up again, I can utilize the group gymnastics that my gym offers. There's a really wide variety of classes, and my goal is to test several different to further find out what kind of workouts I like. I've already tried out a kettlebell class and enjoyed it far more than I'd expected. TL;DR: Try out different group gymnastics at the gym Charms Enchanting an object to behave in a way that isn't normal for that object. It only takes a quick search on Google or Youtube to find mind-boggling videos of people performing moves you'd never imagine to be possible. I believe I'm nowhere near discovering what my body really is able of, and I think it's good practise to stretch one's limits both physically and mentally. I've seen several split stretching routines, and for this challenge I want to incorporate parts of them into my post-workout stretching. I've left stretching out way too many times, and really should make it a core part of my training again. If I feel like I won't have time to stretch, I will cut the workout short instead so that the stretching will get done. TL;DR: Stretch and work on the splits. Potions The art of correctly brewing potions. Among the modern potions we can find moisturizers and cleansing waters. I want to keep up my habit of washing my face every night before going to sleep and moisturizing it every morning before applying makeup. Elaborating on my goals in the Very Girly PVP last challenge I'll also try to keep up my nail care, i.e. making sure I'm not biting my nails or ripping up the skin around them, and taking care to reapply nail polish if it starts flaking. Taking care of other parts of the skin than the face is also appreciated, especially now that the dry winter air is coming. TL;DR: Skin & nail care Arithmancy Studying the magical properties of numbers. Ah, numbers and math! What and where would my studies be without you? Arithmancy is not an easy subject, and neither are the classes I'm taking right now. The weekly exercises swallow a lot of my free time, and I'm sure I could do better. Therefore, for my arithmancy class, I want to try to get all my weekly exercises done before the weekend so I can enjoy some free time at least a couple of days a week. I have several friends taking the same classes I take, so I'll make an effort to get a kind of study circle started. I also need to prioritize my studies right now, as I'm nearing the end of my career as a student of acoustics. TL;DR: More studying, less other stuff. Ancient Runes Studying and learning to write in ancient runes. Anyone who knows me knows I love the Lord of the Rings. It's my defining fantasy world and has continued to have a special place in my heart ever since I first read the books. As anyone who has read the books or seen the movies know, there exist elvish languages and scripts, of which the most commonly known are the languages quenya and sindarin, and the scripts tengwar and cirth. I've wanted to learn the tengwar script for a very long time, and I'm finally going to do something about it. Learning an alphabet is, after all, easier than learning a language, and I believe that even with my limited free time I could manage to learn some of the letters by heart by the time it's Christmas. TL;DR: Learn to write using tengwar. Defence against the Dark Arts Learning how to defend yourself against dark creatures, dark arts and other dark charms. The darkest enemy in my quest of leveling up myself is definitely sugar. Baked goods, candy, chocolate, everything good conspires against me! But no more will I take it and do nothing! I'm reinstating the ban on buying unhealthy stuff, and adding a ban on making unhealthy stuff myself. If I want to make a dessert, I shall have to figure out how to make one that is sugar free and preferrably doesn't use much white flour. My only exception to this ban are gingerbread cookies, because 1) I will refuse to eat any I haven't made myself anyway (or ones that my mum has made!) and 2) what is the meaning of Advent without gingerbread?! (I'm really channeling my dad here, well there you go!). And I mean proper, scandinavian gingerbread, none of that other stuff I've heard being called gingerbread too. TL;DR: No sweets, no baked goods, unless homemade and sugar free or gingerbread. A short and compact version: Herbology: Eat more greens and use them more in my own cooking. Transfiguration: Try out more group gymnastics at my gym, at least three new classes before the end of the challenge. Charms: Stretch and practise splits after every workout. Cut workout short if stretching wouldn't be done otherwise. Potions: Skin care morning & night, nail care at least once a week. Arithmancy: Do all schoolwork before the weekend. Prioritize! Ancient Runes: Learn at least ten tengwar letters by heart before Christmas. Defence against the Dark Arts: Sweets & baked goods ban. Gingerbread are ok. This might look like a lot, but I think it's totally doable. Everything is things I want to do, and that makes it much easier to get going! I'm looking forward to Advent and Christmas already!

Hi everyone! I'm Ensi, a 23-year-old Rebel from Finland. This is my third challenge since my Reboot and I'm very excited to start another challenge! What you'll find here: · hormone friendly eating (I have PCOS) · dealing with emotional eating (mostly due to boredom or stress) · chocoholism · strength training at home and gym · fangirling · studying! "Sisu" in Finnish basically means "to not give in when faced with difficulties, to exceed oneself". I'm going to keep a positive attitude and see where that takes me! The Sweetest Day of the Week is something I'm going to keep from my previous challenges. I'm allowed to have one small portion of chocolate daily, and on Saturdays I can have whatever I want. This is simple, removes the guilt from eating sweets, and I don't feel like I'm deprived of anything. Even though I can have anything I want on Saturdays, usually I don't even want all that much. GOAAAALS: #1 Develop Mindfulness Skills My life is very busy and hectic at the moment: a lot of studies, assignments and essays. Combined with my general anxiety and the SAD season, I need to find techniques to keep myself a happy little Rebel. So, every day I’m going to do something fun! I also have the bad habit of staying up late and surfing online. I’m going to cut down the time I spend on the computer and try to go to the bed by 10.30 PM, read a book and sleep well. - spend 20 minutes daily doing something calm and enjoyable: drawing, stretching, listening to music etc. - no computer after 10 PM #2 Mind Your Chocolate Milk, Numbnuts! This goal is all about cutting down on my dairy, chocolate and nut consumption. To put it simply, I can have one portion of each daily, but not more. I’m also going to opt for goat cheese for dairy, when possible. #3 Get Moving I’m a bit worried with this goal already (almost wrote â€goatâ€). I’m almost back in health, but the flu and pneumonia I had have made me a bit paranoid with exercising. I don’t know how to set up this goal, but it’s important that the exercise isn’t too rough: I’m not training for any competitions or such, I’m simply aiming to boost my immune system and have energy through the dark autumn. I’m going to aim for three workouts every week. To keep things simple, they can be any exercise I want. I’m also walking a lot daily. ** I'm assigning attribute points a bit later Have a great challenge, everyone!

Hi to all! I am signing up for my first NF Challenge! i'm pretty excited about this as i think it may help me over the next months, and maybe my whole life. I am a big LoTR fan and i love the concept of going on a Life Quest with you guys! I am a student in the last year of my bachelor's degree (Landscape Architecture) and well, it's tough, on the mind, on the body, and i find myself slipping, even as i can see the end of the tunnel... I have a busy schedule (like many of us, i know) but as a student i have to work on the side to earn "survival" money and i bring loads of work home with me in the evenings and week ends. Time off and vacation are something i have very little of in general. I am lucky enough to be a reasonably healthy person but i find i am not able to focus properly on my daily tasks. I procrastinate quite a bit when i should be working on an assignment. My mind keeps wandering to "unimportant" things... I struggle to keep up with everything... So you may say : this is a FITNESS challenge, not a motivational course... this is not the right place... adding extra work is not going to help... I thought so too, but i find that keeping in physical shape helps the mind focus, keeps the brain more efficient, and makes me keep a tighter schedule. If i don't have some form of physical activity, i just go insane... but i need DISCIPLINE So, i signed up recently for martial arts at Fight Move Academy near where i live. I really wanted to do MMA - the toughest thing there is. (i have done Nin jutsu and Kung fu, and rugby too) I tested a course and had to admit i don't have enough experience and chose to do Muay Thai to start with. I've been training for a few weeks now and i just - love -it! It's keeping me fit, and full of energy - i feel i can actually DO more stuff, even if i have less time! So now that you have some background, here are the objectives: MAIN QUEST: Forge overall discipline QUEST 1 : keep up the daily/weekly rituals i have already set up : morning workout and meditation. Muai Thai training twice a week minimum. QUEST 2 : spend minimum 2 serious hours each day on my course work. With NO procrastination. QUEST 3: minimum 6 hours sleep every night LIFE QUEST : Short term : Get my degree - Get good enough to train in MMA Long term : forge self discipline MOTIVATION : my motivation for this challenge is to discipline myself into keeping a healthy balance between my physical, mental and financial health. I need to get stuff done but i don't want to ruin myself doing it. Better discipline will help me optimize time and energy. I hope this challenge will help me get better! So cheers to all who are signing up for the challenge i hope we all get better at living a healthy and fulfilling life! V