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Weighed in Yesterday morning to find that I'm down 15 lbs from the first of April! I never thought that lifting would do it - I realize that's dumb of me. But I feel awesome! And I'm so glad I started

I haven't been here for a year, but I'm back for the sake of the challenge accountability. I want to focus on diet this time around. I've started picking some of my bad food habits back up, and since January I've regained a couple of the pounds I lost in 2016/2017. I want to lose another 15-20 pounds instead of gaining more. This challenge is going to focus on improving my eating habits and losing weight again. Specifically, I want to cut down on sugar and stop snacking between meals. I've been better about fitness than diet. I haven't really had much direction this year, but I'm fine with what I'm doing. I'd rather spend my mental energy on my new job and on music than improving fitness. So my fitness goal is to continue as is: get at least 10,000 steps a day, do two strength training workouts a week (30-60 minutes each), and at a minimum get 30 minutes exercise every other day. Finally, I'm taking violin lessons after a long hiatus. Finding time to practice is hard. Extra challenges: Memorial day weekend, a week-long business trip, a long weekend trip, a going away party for a friend moving out of the country, and all the usual little celebrations and occasions when there's social pressure to overeat at least a little. I've got a list of other things that I'd like to do, but I want to prioritize weight loss and music right now. I'll mention the others and may use them for mini-challenges. No screen time for an hour before bed time. Get up an hour early to walk, do yoga, or otherwise work out. Speed walking workouts. I did a 4k speed walk race and finished with just over 9 minute miles, faster than I've ever run. I want to see if I can translate that to 5k walked in under 30 minutes. Make online dating profiles. Specific Goals: I'll be printing out a calendar to track my progress on paper. Diet: Sugar: Less than 5 g of added sugar in a day and no cookies/candy/chocolates is excellent, worth a sparkly sticker. 5-25 g of added sugar and a single small cookie/chocolate/etc is pretty good, worth a non-sparkly sticker. 25-50 g of added sugar or 200 calories of cookies/chocolate/etc is significantly more than ideal, but it's the most I can eat and still have a not-too-bad day nutritionwise. I get a black squiggly mouth face. I want to limit this to one in the whole month. More than 200 calories of cookies/chocolate/etc: I get a big red frowny face. Regular meals: Two/Three meals and no snacks: Sparkly sticker. Small healthy snack because I didn't adequately plan for meals and get distractingly hungry between meals: non-sparkly sticker. 1-2 snacks of fruit, vegetables, or something healthy and under 100 calories between meals for no good reason: black squiggly mouth face. More than 1-2 between meal snacks, too many calories, or junk food as snacks: big red frowny face. If I'm not eating regular meals because my schedule gets screwy, I may change this up. Tracking: If I track the day on the LoseIt! app, I get a smiley face. If I don't track, I get a frowny face. Fitness: Meeting minimum steps and workout goals: Smiley face. Not meeting minumum steps and workout goals: Frowny face. Violin: Practice 60+ minutes: Music notes. Practice 30-60 minute a day: Gold star. Practice less than 30 minutes: Squiggly mouth face. Don't practice: Frowny face.

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. ~Winston Churchill I just watched Darkest Hour so I'm channelling Winston for this challenge. The over-arching goal for the next 8 weeks is to lose 1kg per week to put me below 80kg before I go on holiday to Hong Kong in June. For this challenge I'm reviving the goals from the Feb-March challenge as it was a successful one. Goals: - No Alcohol - 1 hour walk or 1 hour gym every day - Track Calories (eating to meal plan counts) - "Never 2 in a row" Weigh-in: 86.8kg starting weight. I also got a DEXA yesterday which I will use for comparison at the end of the next challenge. Rewards: - F45 t-shirt if I lose 4kg this callenge

It is finally that time, that I can see the edges of twotopia land. It has been a few years since my last visit. This time, I don't plan to turn back. I'll stay awhile, then take off for an area called Onderland. I may not be able to hit this during the challenge, but I am sure going to try! So far since coming back to Nerdfitness, things have been going well. The last couple of challenges were not 100%, but I learned from them. I continued on. The real hero of my challenges has been Keto. In the past, Whole30 was great for me, but I just was never able to stay with it. Years ago, I had started with a "low carb" approach. This was still tons of carbs per day, but it was working. Keto has been the only thing that has really been sticking with me. 3 times I have been off it since the first. And emergency family trip down sound' That was like a 4 day eat fest with landed me with 10 pound for those 4 days. The 2nd time was a party at my wife's work. Though, it was just that night, and I was back on it. Didn't feel any major effect. The last time was during this last challenge. We headed to New York. About 9 days total of me eating whatever. That gave me a 14.5 pound gain. This one was the harder one to bounce back from. Almost like starting over from scratch. Cravings were so bad one night, I almost gave in. Then two days later, and I was fat adapted again. At least I assume so, because all those candy/chip cravings vanished. There is still my brain saying "oh, that woudl be good", but it is easy to dismiss it as just a little impulse. I think this is why Keto has worked for me. I haven't had these super cravings, and my appetite has been suppressed. I don't always have that constant need to be snacking on food. Maybe that is just me though. So my goals will try to continue to build on the success I am having, and what I want for future goals. Goal#1 - Continue to Keto and IF tracking plus let's add water I think for the most part, I have the Keto/IF/Tracking part down now. Well enough anyway. I want to add a little extra this challenge though. Time to track my water. I know there are some days that I don't drink enough water. I don't have a specific spot I want to hit, I just want to track it. If I am tracking it, then I might be more mindful about drinking too. All tracking will be done in MFP except the IF part. That is will be manually tracked. Scoring: 1 point for tracking Keto/IF and 1 point for tracking Water in MFP each day. 14 points per week total. Goal#2 - Return of the sleep goal I have to have this back again. I have been really off lately. Time to get this back on track. Computer off at 11 pm, then reading until Midnight. Then hit the bed. Hopefully, if I can get this back on track, my body will respond with giving me better sleep overall. I have an alarm set for 11:55 pm. Just to let me know it is time to wrap it up in my book. If I am reading in a chapter, I will let myself finish it off. No "Hey, I read a word on this next chapter, guess I have to stay up to read it" haha. Scoring: 1 point for getting off the computer on time. 1 point for reading, and getting off to bed by midnight. 14 points per week total. Goal#3 - Get up, and Get Going You know, I have these goals in mind, and they aren't all going to happen magically because I am eating Keto. This will probably be the hardest for me this challenge. Every challenge this year, exercise has been the thing to fail on me. I want to do C25k again. So I can run again. I want to do body weight workouts to start building that muscle back up. I even like to get out and walk, because I do enjoy it. I just can't seem to get the walking habit going. I want try getting C25k this challenge. If I can do it, then I will continue going with it. If not, then I need to add in Body weight workouts. Hopefully, I can get in C25k, and start doing body weight workouts as well. That's the hope any how. If I am doing this, then I will have Sunday as rest day. For this challenge, I am going to try to get all of this in. Just building up to each step. Since I know it is easiest to get stuff done in the morning, that will be part of it. Get up, and get going. Week 1 - Hit 6,000 steps a day. (decided to C25k this week, adding in scoring) Week 2 - Hit 7,000 steps a day. (continue C25k here) Week 3 - Hit 8,000 steps a day, plus add in M/W/F C25k or Bodyweight workouts Week 4 - Hit 9,000 steps a day, plus continue M/W/F workout Scoring: 2 points for hitting the step goal. 2 points per run or workout. Total points per week 18 points Goal#4 - Check in, check in, check in Last challenge, I stopped checking in each day. I felt bad for it, and I wasn't out there supporting others like I should be. I was better on my blog, but not where i was earlier. So this challenge is for me to check in each day. I also need to visit others here to see how they are. Plus, I need to get that blog post done each day. Scoring: 0.5 for NF check in, 0.5 for blog post each day. 7 points total per week. Measurements - Week 1 / End of Challenge Neck - 19.29 in / Chest - 51.96 in / Waist at belly button - 56.22 in / Bicep (L) - 16.77 in / Bicep (R) - 16.65 in / Forearm (L) - 13.26 in / Forearm (R) - 13.26 in / Thigh (L) - 27.99 in / Thigh (R) - 27.00 in / Weight - 317.1 lbs / Weekly points Week 1 - 48/53 - 90.5% Week 2 - 35/41 - 85% Week 3 - 0/ Week 4 - 0/ Challenge total = 0/

Nightcrawler_Bamff Rejoins the X-Men (Take 2) Nightcrawler: Me Rogue: Unknown (but AMAZING!) Photo: Burump (Instagram) Goal: Get back to within 2lbs of my Weight Watchers goal so I can start going to meetings for free again and stop paying for the online tools. This was the goal for the last challenge, but I fell off the wagon and ended up at the same weight I started at. I am currently 6lbs away from this goal. How: 1. Weight Watchers: WRITE IT DOWN!! I'm figuring out that if I eat something that isnt very Weight Watchers friendly, I end up counting the day as a loss and continue making poor choices for the day. That ends up impacting the rest of the week too. If I track it, I am less likely to let that affect the rest of the day or week. I am planning ahead for three days that I will not be tracking - friend's wedding and two going away parties...*read that last part in a cryptic voice*...more will be explained soon!!) 2. Exercise: Work out at least three times per week. The last challenge, I tried to say specifically to go to the gym (NOT including gymnastics) three times per week, but my schedule ended up limiting that. My goal for this challenge is still to work out three times per week, but I can replace one of the gym workouts with gymnastics class if needed. 3. Work pantry: STAY OUT! This will not be a problem for part of the challenge (*use cryptic voice again!*) Interpreting: I am working on a continuing education program with my peer mentor and our goal is to do one lesson per week. I would also like to add in some extra practice. I think I can commit to 10 minutes per day, five days a week of working either into English or American Sign Language. If that ends up being too easy, I will tweak it during the challenge. Gymnastics: I will give weekly updates on anything fun that happens in gymnastics class. I just connected a front handspring and front tuck for the first time the last week of the last challenge, so lets see if I can keep it and if I can build on that!

Right now I'm unemployed and it's great! I'm finishing a semester of school, and I've got a job lined up to start on May 21, pending a physical and such on Friday morning. But until then, I've got plenty of time to get into the gym and work my butt off and prepare good meals and track nutrition. If I really buckle down, I think I can get below 240 lbs. by the start of my new job. I've also just read How to Be a Stoic by Massimo Pigliucci. I've always had a spiritual and philosophical streak in me, and I've had problems with depression, anxiety, and some anger. I often go down youtube rabbit holes about philosophy, religion, and society. Recently, I came across some videos on Cynicism and Stoicism, and decided to give Massimo's book a read. As those who've followed me a while I'm fond of Zen Buddhism for its mindfulness, discipline, and compassion, but one thing that always bothered me with it is its disregard of rational thought in favor of spontaneity and emptiness. Stoicism seems to compensate for that well while by replacing these with rational thought, and it's virtues foster mindfulness, discipline, and compassion. So let's shoe horn some goals into the cardinal Stoic virtues... eh? And for once, I'll actually grade things with points. Because a Stoic would collect data and use it to inform future decisions, even if it was time consuming and sometimes frustrating or annoying. Zero week points = bonus points to be distributed freely at challenge end. Goal 1, Wisdom: Practice Stoic meditations in the morning and evening. Journal the results. Morning meditation questions: Reminder of the previous day. What challenges do you anticipate today? How will you overcome these challenges while maintaining your virtue? Evening: What good deeds did you do today? In what deeds did you fail to maintain your virtue? What is left to be done, or improved upon? Do it everyday. 28 days. 1 point for morning, 1 point for evening, 1 point for journaling. 3 points/day. 84 points total Goal 2, Temperance: Track nutrition, regulate food intake for healthy weight loss. MFP everyday. Hit BMR calories, ~2167 cals. Stay below, 3000 cals. At least 100 g Protein 1 point each day for tracking. 1 point for keeping cals in range, 1 point for sufficient protein. 3 points/day. 84 points total. Side quests: Limit coffee to one cup before sun up. And avoid alcohol. This is for GI health, and mental clarity. And avoiding alcohol for weight loss. Goal 3, Courage Go to gym. Because lifting stuff makes you braver or something. Go to the gym and lift something then do cardio. 6 hours each of four weeks. 1 point / hour. 24 points total. Goal 4, Justice. Do good deeds. Help other people. Or at the very least, be a fucking adult. 1 point for each good deed or adulting task completed. Aim for 1 per day. 28 days. 28 points. LUYL_1: Figure out what the fuck cardio means in spanish. I spent 90 minutes on an elliptical, while I'm glad I burned 900 calories (supposedly), that time might have been better spent studying my Spanish textbook, or consuming some other reading material. Hmm... maybe I should have tried to find a Spanish channel on one of the TVs while I ellipticaled. Basically, this goal is to bring a book to the gym to make good use of lame cardio time. LUYL_2: Keep studying spanish. Duolingo changed everything all of a sudden and now it annoys me. But I should start incorporating and moving on to new ways of learning. Such as: Working through the Spanish language course Watching Netflix shows in spanish Reading Kid's books, newspapers in Spanish. I should still try to finish the Duolingo tree tho. LUYL_3: Flamenco guitar Daily practice. My teacher dropped hints last week he might invite me to join his Flamenco orchestra this summer. So I ought to keep practicing daily and dilligently. Ugh. Why are my initial posts so damn long?

I seem to have an on again, off again relationship with this website. I've never used it very actively, but I am at a point that I am fed up with everything about myself physically. I am in poor shape, I am overweight, and this needs to change. I had a hysterectomy due to endometriosis in 2016 where they left one ovary in. I decided this past Jan I was going to start working out and had managed to lose 15# just by calorie counting. Well, the first day I worked out, with just light cardio, I was in excruciating abdominal pain. Turns out, that ovary is revolting against my body and it needs removed. I put the gym membership on hold, and since the providers wouldn't give me anything to manage pain, I've been eating my stress and pain. That 15# is back. I have the surgery scheduled for 4/25 to have the ovary removed, it will be laproscopic, and a 2 week recovery time. I plan on easing back into the gym at that point. I decided I am going to start meal planning again starting next week (already have plans for the weekend.) I need to get back on track. My husband and I like to hike, but the shape I am in right now is not very good for that. We also want to start backpacking and I need to get in better shape before then, too. I don't have great endurance, I have back pain from the weight (and endo.) I just don't even know what to do after I have all my hormones ripped from me. I won't be able to go on hormone replacement, so it'll be handle it as best as I can. I assume losing weight will be a lot harder, but can anyone shed light on what to expect post op when I start exercising? FYI: Stats weight: 215 lb height: 5'1"

Hello to everyone who reads this, Im 19 years old, 180lb, currently working out from 6am-7:30am before work and classes since im first year university. I have found a routine that I enjoy a lot but my main goal after working out for over a year now is to cut the fat. I changed my diet to a No Sugar, Low sodium, Low Carb, High protein. I also eat snacks between my main 3 meals a day but it consists of Nuts and/or fruits. Down below is my current workout routine. Its a Full body 3-4 days a week. I also put a picture of myself. I know i might seem small to others like bodybuilders but I want a healthy looking body not a body building one. Thank you!

Antidepressants and unhealthy habits have pretty much put my libido in a Saharan pit, so, hey guys, here's a super fun challenge. Of course, this being a public forum, I'll be working hard to keep it to innuendo and limit the juicy details. Food: - track on MFP every day - 10 points for every day without sugar - 10 points for every healthy meal - better hydrate... 10 points for every bottle of water consumed. - limit to 1 diet coke a day Brain: - read at least 30 minutes before bed every night House: - clean for 30 minutes every day as soon as I get home from work - 10 points for cleaning in lingerie Relationship (this was hard to make into smart goals because it involves more than one other person's needs and schedules): - 10 points for going out on a date - 10 points for hanging out together doing stuff other than watching TV - 50 points if I finish reading The Book about poly stuff even though it is dense and dull - 100 points if I you know what with the you know who in the you know where Exercise: - yoga on rest days to be sexy and flexy - 50 squats a day - darebee workout program for amazonian sex goddess warrior body - 10 points for every swim in the school pool Loot - 50 points: facial - 100 points: massage - 150 points: dinner at Brown House - 200 points: dinner at Patty's -250 points: free pass day

"...this time for sure!" I let my weight get out of hand over the last few months, mainly from eating comfort carbs. After speaking sternly to myself, I went out and bought a digital scale and am recording my weight when I get up and just before going to bed. Baseline was about 232-233 pounds, but now it's hovering around 226-227 and creeping down very slowly. To increase the downward trend slightly and make slow but steady progress, this is what I'm thinking of doing: Utilize a sort of intermittent fasting, confining all meals to a period of 12 hours or less (8 hours when practical). No strict calorie or carb counting or restriction, but trying to eat more of the good stuff and less of the not-so-good stuff. Written food record, possibly also noting how I'm feeling at the time and what's going on when I eat. What else might be useful in setting this up and making it work over the long haul?

Shout out from Brisbane, Australia! First time committing to any sort of fitness program, so bare with me... I love being outdoors: bushwalking, mountain biking, rock climbing, kayaking etc. I am a big guy at 6'4" pr 196cm. I currently weigh 120kg and aim to get this down, which should in turn make me awesome at all these outdoor sports...right? Main quest: Do 5 pull ups (should help me with rock climbing massively) mini goals 1: Get to 100kgs - Losing weight is pull up 101 mini goals 2: Strength train 3 times a week, focus on shoulders and upper body. mini goal 3: Eat a paleo-ish diet, low sugar, low grains, lots of meat & fish and vegies. How will I achieve these goals I hear someone whisper.. I need to build a box to practice pull ups with, as in the NF video. mini goal 1 - will require discipline in the other 2 areas, which hopefully will pay off in this area. I have also been hearing Beep test is an awesome, easy cardio workout for losing weight. Tonight I got 5-3 23/4/18 mini goal 2 - I will do bench, incline and shoulder press and always include a little core work too. I am tempted to try using less reps, more weight. I will need to talk to my gym instructor about this and find a gym buddy if I feel like I need a spotter. mini goal 3 - I have started this a already and find eggs for breakfast combined with snacks of vegies/fruits for lunch become very filling. Difficult part here is having a partner allergic to fruit and being time poor we often rely on filled pasta dishes for our fast food and lots of beans on toast type meals. I look forward to being part of the community and seeing what everyone else does. This bloggy part should be updated twice a week with progress. Here we goooooooooooo.......

Hi friends! I'm new here and really excited to join a community of fitness-obsessed nerds like myself It was like a light switched on in my brain when I realized I could actually train myself to do the things my favorite movie/television/video game characters do instead of just sitting on my couch wishing I were that cool. It's been a long and ongoing journey of constant change and self-improvement, and I'm really proud of how far I've come. I feel like parts of me belong in each of the guilds but I picked the adventurer guild because I lost my first 50 lbs when I discovered my love of hiking, and adventuring outdoors is still one of the most peaceful and inspiring parts of my life. My current workout regime looks something like this... 5 days/week : lifting heavy ~40 min (I'm on week 2 of Ashley Horner's Charlie Mike program right now) 2 days/week : 1 hour bootcamp classes or other cardio conditioning 3 days/week : 45 min cardio (run or elliptical) *or* trail run I really enjoy working out - it has been more effective than any anti-depressant or talk therapy My main struggle is with nutrition (I am a sucker for sweets) so I've been working on maintaining a diet at 1400 cal and 50-60% protein. It's going well so far and the nutritional guidelines I'm following don't make me feel hungry, deprived or lacking energy. I just started eating meat again to help meet my protein goals. I really liked being a veg but it's hard to meet my goals that way, so I'm just trying to get responsibly sourced meat/eggs. STRENGTHS: - Healing/Herbal Lore - Lifting heavy things - Hiking/outdoor sports - Endurance WEAKNESSES: - Cookies, Doughnuts - Running - Charisma - Agility (mediocre, looking to improve) GOALS: - Improve my 1RMs by at least 10 lbs in 6 weeks (I picked this kind of arbitrarily but I think it's doable?) - Weight loss 2lbs/week (I don't usually condone numeric weight loss goals for anyone but I'm giving it a shot because I already have a substantial base of lean muscle mass and I'm trying to cut fat) - Meditate 3x/week for 7 minutes - Stretch every day - Foam roll at least once/week - Trail run or hike once a week (5+ miles) - All-around badassery I'm also a beginner climber so if any assassin friends have tips for n00bs, please share TIA my lovelies, looking forward to meeting everyone!

My last challenge was going awesome UNTIL I FELL OFF A HOOP AND SPRAINED MY WRIST. So, I have at least found out today that I'm not allowed to do heavy lifting for another month. I just tried to pump my bike tyres up, and that was impossible enough. :-( So. No more gym or callisthenics until my wrist is healed. :-( :-( :-( So that means I need to focus on other things. I've chosen weight loss, writing, and flexibility. Weight loss Track calories for a month Come under calorie goal for 5 days a week 1 2 3 4 Writing Character sketches: Dad BF/love interest Jack Boss Start blog series on obesity 1 2 Flexibility YOGA EVERY DAY Week 1 2 3 4 Hula hoop class Week 1 2 3 4 Bonus round 10k steps every day 1 2 3 4 Sedation assistant package

So, I'm actually competing in a local No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu tournament this Sunday. I don't feel that I took the steps to fully prepare for it. I want to make a change and after this tournament really focus on improvement of myself. Here are my goals: Physical Goals I'm planning on competing in the World Master IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship. For those not familiar with Sport Jiu-Jitsu, this just means you're over 30. There are also weight classes and right now, I'm in the super fatty weight class that has no limit. I plan to compete at Heavyweight which has a limit of 208 pounds. So the way I'm thinking is if I'm able to lose 10-12 pounds I would be able to reach my goal. While I'm considered very agile for my size (250 lbs) I believe that I am lacking strength-wise in my current division. So this goal will address that. The Plan 1. For Whom the Bell Tolls During a podcast interview, Eddie Bravo black belt, Denny Prokopos discussed the benefits of implementing kettlebell training. He mentions that after numerous injuries, his knees just couldn't handle the impact from running. He has since replaced running with kettlebells which he swears by as it gives him both strength and cardio training. The benefits of gaining some strength would be great and since I hate running anyway, I'll be able to hit that too. 2. The Key to Better Jiu Jitsu is More Jiu Jitsu. I often feel that I could train more. So my training schedule will go as follows: M/W- 6AM Gi Jiu Jitsu T/Th - 6AM No Gi Jiu Jitsu F - 6AM Gi Jiu Jitsu / 6PM No Gi Jiu Jitsu The weekends I'll check out some open mats. If I can, I'll try to come in late for one of the 6PM classes, but seeing how I get off work at 6PM except Fridays where I get off an hour earlier. Then I have a half hour commute, it gets difficult. 3. The Element That Brings Life Really, I thought I knew stuff about nutrition, but things have changed so much. I'm interested in the Ketogenic diet, but at this point I'm not familiar enough to even attempt to implement that as my diet. For now, I will focus on proper hydration. For the duration of the challenge, the only beverages I'll consume will be water, coffee, and if I make myself a protein shake out of protein powder and water. I have one of those vacuum insulated water bottles that holds 40 oz. I'll drink one of those before lunch. One after Lunch. and another after work. Mental Goal - Read More I haven't actually read a book in a few years. I sometimes listen to audio books on my way to work, but there's something meditative when it comes to actually reading a book. I did just pick up a copy of American Gods, so I think I'll start reading that. I plan to read for an hour before I go to bed every night. Lifestyle - There's Something About a Clean House, a Clean Room. Dishes keep piling up in our sink. Both my wife and I hate doing the dishes, but it just gets ridiculous sometimes. I think both my wife and I would appreciate it if the dishes were done. So, I plan to do the dishes every night. I'll make sure that the dishwasher is loaded up by the end of the night. It runs overnight. Then put away the dishes in the morning. Hopefully this will become a habit and I can keep the whole house clean because right now it's a huge mess.

Photo by Robert W Scott Photography on Flickr: Costume by me Photo by Robert W Scott Photography on Flickr Nightcrawler has been working hard to lose the extra pounds he had gained during his two years away from the team. Over the course of the next four weeks, he plans to drop the remainder of the excess weight and rejoin his friends at the mansion. Goal: Finally get back to my Weight Watchers goal weight! Plan: 1. Follow the Weight Watchers program: Track everything and stay within my points allowance each week. 2. Go to the gym three days a week: I got a gym membership between challenges and plan to use it! I don't feel like I need a goal for while I'm in there for now...Its still new and exciting and I feel like just getting in will result in doing real workouts each time. 3. Stay out of the pantry at work: Continuing this from the previous challenge since I had so much success that time! There is a cupboard at work that is always filled with junk food, which is a major reason for the weight gain over the last 1-2 years. I am not good with self control when it comes to free food, so I go all or nothing - either I eat everything I find in there all day long, or say its off limits and cant have any of it. I am staying out of it all together. Life goal: Improve interpreting skills: I was accepted into a control group for a program that ends in November or December in which they will pay for my national certification test at the end, which costs about $450 and has a 14% pass rate. Because of the low pass rate, I am considering this a free trial to see what I need to expect when I actually have to pay for it. However, I would LOVE to not have to pay for it at all, so will be trying my best to improve as much as I can over the next six months. How: Finish the initial tests: The program involves tests at the beginning and end to compare. The first set of tests is due April 1 and they are fairly time consuming. I did the practice ones, which took me about five hours all together...And they are much shorter and far less work than the actual tests. I am not entirely certain what the next steps after that are, but I will update this part of the challenge at that point.

I'm so happy I get to join the Rangers guild for this challenge! I did my first challenge in the nub section last month. Main Quest: No more I have a sugar demon that needs slaying. No more sweets at home or at work. This is going to be really, really tough for me compared to my last main quest. I'm fully resolved to conquer this by the end of the challenge, though. Secondary Quest: I create myself Schedule and complete 2 planned workouts per week (continuing this from my last challenge because an injury had me batting 50%) At least 1 of these workouts needs to be circuit training each week (I like to dance too much and I hate weightlifting -- I'll never lift a single weight or do any bodyweight exercises if I don't do this) Go on an intentional walk every day (expanding on this habit, as I walk at work every day) Secondary Quest: Keep calm and beware the bad wolf Take 5 minutes to meditate each morning

Yep I have no shame, it's Europe to the rescue! Bust out the big hair, we're headed for Venus!! Summary I set out on Jan 1st this year to drop 20kg, there are 4.4kg remaining. This challenge will be focused on cutting the final 4.4kg to get me under 80kg. Goals: 1. No alcohol until I'm sub 80kg. (2 exceptions allowed, this Saturday is my friend's 60th and 28 March I have a work lunch) 2. 4 x F45 challenge sessions a week 3. Eat 100% to the F45 meal plans for the first 2 weeks and 80% after that. 4. 2 x 6km walks a week 5. Rehab my shoulder. Physio exercises 3 times a week on Monday, Wednesday Friday. Please feel free to hold me accountable for this, I never do them. Measures: 1. I have an F45 end of challenge body scan in 2 weeks time, that will be a difference scan of 8 weeks. 2. I have a full DEXA booked for 17 April. This one must see me at under 80kg or I will be disappointed. Rewards 1. I have a drive day lined up for 11 April where I take my MX5 (Miata) on a track with some friends. I'd like this to be my weight loss reward which means I have 3.5 weeks to drop 4.4kg. 2. Something else I haven't decided yet, maybe some new clothes, maybe a massive wig! Let's Rock!

This challenge will be a two part challenge for me. One part of this challenge will be everything at home. The second part involves me traveling to New York City. I am bowling in the USBC Open Championships on March 29th and 30th. This year, it is being held in Syracuse, NY. Having never been to New York, we are flying out a few days early. We fly red eye from San Jose, Ca on the 23rd, and come home on the 31st. Challenge Part 1: This will be for all the dates I am home. Actually trying to start during this off week. Goal#1 - Keto, MFP tracking, and Intermittent fasting continues Eating Keto has been working great for me so far. I want to keep tracking, and keep with IF. I believe my eating window will be Noon to 6 pm. Goal#2 - Get your sleep routine down At the end of last challenge, I had started breaking my sleep cycle. So the goal is to get it back into shape before my trip, and after. This goal is to get me reading by 11 pm, and in bed at midnight. Goal#3 - I need to exercise Ok, I have been wishy washy with this all year. I need to get walking, and I need to step up to something more as well. My goal is to get in 5 walks each week before my trip. Once I am home, I want to be able to kick it up. 3 workouts per week, plus continue the walking. I want to be able to do bigger things this year (5k for example) so I need to get this going. Challenge Part 2: There will be 4 big travel days during the challenge. The flight to NYC 23-24th (arrive at 6:30 am), the drive to Syracuse 28th (about 5 hours it looks like), and then the drive back to the city 30th after I bowl). Finally, the flight home 31st (arrive at 11 pm) I will try to track those days, but I am giving myself forgiveness if I don't. The real goal here is to have fun. The family and I have never been to NYC, so we are going to be tourists. Then, I hope to bowl well in the tournament. I will fall off the Keto wagon here. I could very much try to stay on Keto, but when will I get back out here to have all the New York experience. Like Pizza. I've come up with a few goals to not really restrict me, but hopefully help keep me mindful of what I am eating. Goal#1 - Be the Tourist We have The Statue of Liberty, Natural History Museum, 9/11 Memorial/Museum, and a bus tour to do while we are there. I'm also meeting up with a few gaming buddies. So no excuse not to take plenty of pictures. This should also give me plenty of reason to walk to places. (times square, central park, etc) Goal#2 - Daily Food Journal Now, I don't even want to try to have the night mare of tracking everything in MFP. So I think what I want here is to just have a journal with me, or spreadsheet. Then I can keep track of food I eat. Hopefully, this will help me to not just graze eat all the time. I know we will have snacks around, and I would rather not be constantly eating them. Goal#3 - Sleep I want to do my best to make sure I continue to get the rest I will need. I can't tell 100% what shall happen each night we are there, but I would like to not be staying up till 2 am playing WoW, then get up at 7 to start the day. So this is my challenge. Survive New York, and come back to kick ass. Grading while home: Goal#1 - 7 days, 3 points per day. Tracking, under 20 net carbs, & Eating in my Noon to 6 pm window Goal#2 - 7 days, 2 points per day. Reading no later then 11:10 pm. Headed to bed by 12:05 am. Goal#3 - 5 walks per week, 1 point per walk each day. Once back from NYC, add in 3 points for workouts per week. Grading on Vacation: 8 days Goal#1 - No grade here. Have fun! Goal#2 - 1 point per day. Goal#3 - 1 point per day. I was going to have no grading while I am gone, but I want to try to have something to keep me wanting to do these while I am out there. Measurements End of last challenge/Start of new challenge/Finish: (taken March 12) Weight - 335.4 lbs / 321.1 lbs = 14.3 lbs lost Neck – 19.60 in / 19.29 in = 0.31 in lost Chest – 52.95 in / 52.51 in = 0.43 in lost Waist at belly button – 58.07 in / 56.73 in = 1.33 in lost Bicep (L) – 17.00 in / 15.94 in = 1.06 in lost Bicep (R) – 16.61 in / 15.94 in = 0.66 in lost Forearm (L) – 13.50 in / 13.11 in = 0.39 in lost Forearm (R) – 13.50 in / 12.99 in = 0.51 in lost Thigh (L) – 28.58 in / 28.07 in = 0.51 in lost Thigh (R) – 27.71 in / 27.00 in = 0.70 in lost

After an extremely long hiatus, I'm back. I fell off the Nerd Fitness wagon last year but now I'm back. I did a few challenges previously and I liked the four week format. I've been on a weigh loss journey for a very long time but have never reached my end goal. When it comes to exercise, I have no problem at all -- I love it. My problem is eating, I don't make the best food choices. Currently I'm doing Weight Watchers and while I track my foods on their app as well as on My Fitness Pal, I eat too many "high point" foods. So, I am setting up this challenge to hold myself more accountable and to have the support of the NF community. Goal #1: Continue half marathon training -- race is on May 6th I'm currently using the half marathon training app from Zenlabs and I like the prompts it gives me when to run or walk. The race is only 7 weeks out and even though it's not my first race, I just wanted to be a bit more prepared than I have during previous races . I'm finishing up a RunBet this week and I've found that has been a great motivator to run on a regular basis. Goal #2: Orangetheory at least 3x/wk As I continue to go to OTF, I can feel my body getting stronger. There are days I don't want to go after sneaking a peek at the day's workout (usually when burpees are involved) but have to since I have goals to meet. I want to continue going at least three times a week so I can keep up my weekly calorie burn. Goal #3: Vegetables or salad with each meal I don't eat enough vegetables. It's not that I don't like them, I just don't make an effort to make them for each meal. So yes, I will work on getting more vegetables in each day. Goal #4: Continue IF 16:8 I've been doing consistent intermittent fasting for the last few weeks and I feel it has been going well. I changed jobs back in October and now have a schedule where it's not as torturous to wait until 12 to eat a meal. I start work later in the day so by the time I get to work, it's almost time to break the fast. I would like to continue working with IF to see if it can help me yield better results as far as weight loss goes. I know there have been studies where IF doesn't work as well for women but I still want to keep at it. Wish me luck! I'm glad to be back

Starting a log here! Definitely need the accountability help - my willpower stats are pitifully low. [Peer pressure works - I'll take all the encouragement I can get, please!!] So, joined NF Academy yesterday. (Been on the email list for a while now, finally decided to join up - cheaper than re-upping with a personal trainer and there's a community involved.) Today: - Did drink some of my calories (splurged on a sugared, canned coffee from the local Japanese market - worth it), started the day with a protein shake, and had grand plans for a healthy lunch. - ... Learned the *hard* way that aliums (onion, garlic, etc) can't go raw into a slow cooker. Makes the chicken taste nasty a.f. -- So my chicken-beans-avo lunch became a spinach salad with dressing, eggs, avocado, walnuts and as much cooked chicken as I could manage after hiding the flavor with bbq sauce. NOT the win I'd hoped for (sugars/corn syrups in the dressing and sauces), but still better than throwing in the towel and going to the cafe downstairs for an overpriced sandwich. I've clocked 120g of protein by 5pm, anyway. Pretty certain the added sugar spike is partly to blame for this afternoon's headache (the other parts being hot weather and lady issues). I've been better about cutting sugary out overall in the last few weeks, or at least consciously choosing to consume them. [Can't totally overhaul the pantry - I share the kitchen with Mom, who is NOT working toward clean eating/primal diets and you can pry the tortilla chips and salsa con queso from her cold, dead hands. Also, the office is packed with free junk food on any given day.] Now, if only I didn't have another pound of nasty chicken left to choke down. ;_; Meal prep, y u no tasty? OTL - Walked before work (polling place), at lunch for 40 minutes (hot outside!) and will be meeting a friend at the gym tonight for some light resistance work and hopefully a Zumba class. If I round way down on MyFitnessPal's calorie estimates, that's about 400-ish burned if I survive the Zumba class. [ETA: No, MFP was probably closer to the mark. Oy. That was exhausting! Also, the Zumba instructor is my new 'goal' look: tall, lean, ripped *and* coordinated. Holy fitspo, Batman! (Also hot. Definitely hot.)] - Forgot to take my meds this a.m., which I realized halfway through the day. (And if I take them late, I'll never sleep. @_@) So... day one of this log isn't exactly festooned with successes, but I didn't fall completely off the wagon right out of the gate, either. Now, if only my knees would cooperate with these new bodyweight routines. Owowowowowouch.

My husband and I are looking to lose a LOT of weight between the both of us. But we're also paying debt off which means we have a really tight budget for food. So it's making it hard to eat anything special. At the moment we're making pasta, bread, burrito bowls, chicken soup, etc to save on money and have a lot of leftovers. Our budget for two weeks is $100 or less. Any advice on how we could be eating better? The budget won't be like this forever, we're hoping to be debt free by June. Just have to live scorched earth lifestyle a little while longer.

Guten tag Assassins! Main Quest: Rather vague, but my main quest is to improve my gymnastics skills. I was doing really well for a while, but got fat and lazy and regressed. I can still do most of my skills on the tumble track that I was doing before, but basically can’t do anything on the floor anymore. I blame this largely on weight gain. I lost a bit during the course of the last challenge (I read the dates wrong and didn’t end up participating in the challenge ☹) and really notice a difference! Specific Missions: 1. Lose weight by tracking Weight Watchers points and staying within my weekly goal 2. Exercise enough each week to equate to 50 activity points when logged into Weight Watchers (number subject to change - not sure how easy or difficult this will be). 3. Stay out of the food cupboard at work Going back to basics! I am basically redoing my very first challenge as an assassin…wow…four years ago! Side Quest: Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle: March 1-4. I am remaking my Nightcrawler costume…this time from scratch! I am sewing a body suit myself by altering a Yaya Han pattern. I need to get this done before 2/28…16 days!

Goals: - No Alcohol - 1 hour walk or 1 hour gym every day - Track Calories - "Never 2 in a row" Big shift in my training this challenge, I got injured (again) and decided I am no longer doing Crossfit training with a Personal Trainer. I'll be going to F45 classes instead and training weights at home. I have signed up for the Crossfit Open but I'm not sure at this stage whether I will take part because I'm carrying a bicep tendon impingement injury which prevents me from doing any overhead or bicep work. The overall goal at the moment is body composition, specifically losing fat. Bonus motivators: 1. I'm in a weight loss competition with a friend at work from 6 Feb to 27 Feb, every 500g one of us loses more than the other is $5 you owe them. (This is a repeat, I crushed him in January in case you were wondering!) 2. I've entered an 8 week challenge at my new F45 gym, which runs 29 Jan to 25 March 3. I've set myself up for success with (another) 20 pre-packed Paleo meals. 4. In a PvP with @Baxtan which is a race to see who can lose 7kg (15.4lbs) first. Current status: Starting weight 93.0kg Current Weigh in: 88.9kg PVP progress: 4.1kg lost, 2.9kg to go. Super secret (not so secret) Open motivation

Hey all! Name is Dennis and I am fresh off my comeback victory, or respawn, or whatever you want to call it. You can check out that challenge thread here, or you can take this brief rundown... I started lifting with my focus to lose weight, gain strength, and increase all of my major lifts... ie; Squat, Bench, and Deadlift. All three lifts have gone up since starting around 5 weeks ago, and I lost around 8 lbs. So with that behind me the time has come to leave the newbies/returnees section and get back to the Warriors guild, where I belong. Only 2 things that I am going to focus on this month, just to keep it simple. 1 - Lose Weight 2 - Gain Strength Right now I am on a 3x per week workout schedule, so if you don't see three workouts from me in a week then feel free to kick my ass... I know my coach will! And as far as the weight loss goes I am currently in a PvP Battle with @Endor in a race to the first 7kg lost, so far I have lost 2.3kg and have 4.7kg to go. Those are last Mondays totals, a new weigh in is coming this Monday, so stay tuned for that. Don't feel shy around this thread, feel free to post whatever you want, whenever you want, the more the merrier! Looking forward to getting to know everyone in this Warrior Haven! ILL JUST LEAVE THIS PIC OF ARNIE DEADLIFTING RIGHT HERE. NOTICE... NO STRAPS. HAH!

Challenge #2 of the year. Let's do this. My last challenge went really well for me. 96% overall score. It was exactly what I needed in my return to the Nerdfitness forums. With in one month, I have stopped taking all my medication and lost 22 lbs. With seeing success in the last challenge, this challenge will be very similar. I will add in a few more upgrades to my challenge goals, to push myself a bit more. Hopefully, this will enforce the habits to have them as a good base for the rest of this year, and beyond. Now, on towards the goals for this challenge! Goal #1: Keto on, and add in IF I have successfully ate in the keto method since the first of the year. I figure I may as well continue that on. This challenge, I want to add intermittent fasting back into my eating habits. Now, I may need to adjust the eating window from time to time, but I am going to go for a consistent 18/6. 18 hours of fasting, 6 hours of eating time.My window will be 11 am to 5 pm. This should cover most my needs for times I need to get eating in by. I still need to track everything in MyFitnessPal. Goal #2: Walking, Walking, Walking... I started off last challenge going for 3 days a week to walk on. Eventually moving up to 5 days. This challenge I want to start off with 5 days a week of walking. Eventually moving up to 6 or 7 days, or possibly staying 5 days, but increasing step count. My eventual goal is to get back to running, and possibly adding in body weight workouts. Goal #3: You must still get Sleep I did well last challenge with closing down everything by 11:30 pm, reading till 12:30 am, then getting to bed. Though I have been able to easily slip back into night owl habits in the last few days. I need to have this again. I also notice I wake up a lot more while my wife is getting ready for work. So to get more possible sleep, I am going to try to get to bed 30 minutes earlier. Shut all things down by 11 pm. Then read till Midnight, and head to bed. I'm going to grade on reading as well, because it is too easy for me to not read, but still get to bed on time. Goal #4: Start and finish Introduction to Linux I figure for a bit of fun, I'll take an online course. I've played with linux from time to time, but don't know a lot. This means time to take this class I signed up for awhile back https://www.udemy.com/introduction-to-linux-centos-7/learn/v4/overview Looks like 26 lectures, so I'm guessing enough to last the month. Grading: Goal #1 - 7 days, 3 points per day. 1 point for IF, 1 point for tracking, 1 point for under 20 net carbs Goal #2 - 5 days, 1 point per day of walking. (may get adjusted during the challenge) Goal #3 - 7 days, 2 points per day. 1 point for reading started at 11, and 1 point for heading to bed at 12. Goal #4 - 6 points per week. Almost one per lecture course. Weekly points: Week 1: 37/40 points - 92% Week 2: 38/40 points - 95% Week 3: 0/ points - Week 4: 0/ points - Overall challenge score: Measurements End of last challenge/Start of new challenge/Finish: (taken Feb 5th) Weight: 345.6 lbs / 340.2 lbs / 335.4 lbs Neck: 19.68 in / 18.85 in / 19.60 in Chest: 54.72 in / 53.74 in / 52.95 in Waist at bell button: 59.84 in / 58.66 in / 58.07 in Bicep (L): 16.37 in / 17.08 in / 17 in Bicep (R): 16.33 in / 17.04 in / 16.61 in Forearm (L): 13.34 in / 13.46 in / 13.22 in Forearm (R): 13.58 in / 13.58 in / 13.50 in Thigh (L): 29.44 in / 28.70 in / 28.58 in Thigh (R): 28.30 in / 27.99 in / 27.71 in