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-- WIPE -- Deslok's 2nd Challenge Main Quest - Lose 10 lbs in 6 weeks This is the same as my 1st challenge and I found it harder then I thought it would be. The initial 5-6 lbs come right off but then as you build muscle the weight loss seems to be harder to attain. Oh and sometimes real life gets in the way. Mission 1 - Do the beginner body weight workout at least 3 times a week Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are my weight training days. I will also continue to do my yoga which enables me to work out the soreness that the other workouts cause me so win/win. Mission 2 - Attend 1 yoga class per week at a professional studio Have been reluctant to go to classes so this is a huge fail for me. I have been shopping around for a studio to try out and I have a list of different ones to "drop in" to. I have seen some good groupons for 10 classes for like $50 but want to make sure I don't buy one for a place I would feel comfortable with. Mission 3 - Eat out no more then 1 time per week (this does not mean fast food) My wife and I enjoy good and usually expensive meals (especially once you add a couple of cocktails on to the bill) but this practice is a drain on our finances as well as being hard on my diet. Life Quest - Knock my wife up Not as easy as your would think it would be. Mini Quest 1 - Drink 40oz water each day - Complete Motivation 1st impressions are very important in my line of work, real estate sales, and you can be remembered for many different things. One of these thing is the "big guy" (or the "fat one") which I don't think helps me at all. I take my motivation from the fact that I want to be remembered for being an excellent salesman who knows my business rather then the shape of my body. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Start - Starting Weight: 293.2 Goal Weight: 283.2 Week 1 - Weight: 292.2 - Didn't see any results this week and I think I have to push it harder and eat less. I did eat out twice this week but both times were at inexpensive restaurants not saying they didn't count but just that I was at least mindful of my spending. Week 2 - Umm... I thought I had written here guess I didn't save. Week 3 - Weight: 290.8 - The past week was a mess. I didn't eat right nor did I work out regularly. Going to get back on track starting today! Week 4 - Weight: 288.2 - I have gotten back on track and things are looking good. I lost over 2lbs and have more muscle to show for the work I am putting in. Week 5 - Weight 288.2 - No loss of weight this week but I feel stronger and definitely see muscle gain. I have to lose 5 lbs this week and the week is half over so... Week 6 (End) - Weight 288.2 - 3 weeks straight no weight loss. I count this challenge as a fail. But of course I have made progress and learned a lot about what its going to take to get where I want/need to be.

What! It's new challenge time? HECK YEAH!! So the last few challenges have been very successful. I've gone from just doing bodyweight workouts and strict Paleo to lifting and eating 2200 calories and 200g of carb/protein. Since joining NF, I believe I've lost around 17 lbs, but more importantly a 9% drop in BF. And that's with very little gym/workout time and no "extreme" dieting. My body composition is changing which is what I want. My main goal is health and aesthetics. I want to look good with my shirt off. Ryan Reynolds good. So good that when I take my shirt off, women think in their heads.... And my wife to think... Is it a vain goal? Sure, but I've never been even close to that type of body. I'm at the lowest weight ever in my adult life. I wear a smaller jean than I did in high school (when I could lift more). So yeah, I want low body fat and cut abs. With that, I've been building good habits and have great support from my wife. I love to lift (following a semi-starting strength program) and will continue to do this. I got the nutrition down, I know how to change and modify things, so that's not really a challenge. I know that I need sleep to recover and build strength. These aren't challenges anymore. So I need your help. There is a poll, with some things that I could challenge myself with. I'm willing to try new things, personally I want them to be fitness related. I don't have much time for any sports to play. Please vote and leave a comment. At the end of the week, let's say Feb 28th (unless there are clear winners) I'll pick the top three and carry them through the rest of the challenge. Thanks for the help! EDIT: Currently I lift 3 times a week with alternating programs. Day 1 = Bench, BB Row, RDL, Good Mornings, Dips, DB Curl and DB Hammer Curl Day 2 = Squats, OHP, DL, Leg Press, Calf Press, and Pullups EDIT 3/3/14: CHALLENGE GOALS 1) Pushups!! (+5 STR) I will get a baseline number of pushups performed in one set. I will then try to improve that by 25% by the end of the challenge. If I exceed that before the end of the 5 weeks, I will then at 10% per week. 2) Planks!! (+5 CON) Same with the pushups. I'll try to improve plank time by 25%. Exceeding that value before hand will add 10% per week. 3) Sprints!! (+3 DEX, +2 STA) I will shoot for 8 runs. I will either do it after the gym or while the gym. Never done sprints on a treadmill, but I will try. I like keeping my workouts concentrated since I don't have much time to workout as it is.

In 2013, i got strong. In 2014 i have to train for endurance and long distance cycling. When i joined NF almost 2 years ago i promised my cousin that i would cycle the Cape Argus Cycle Tour on his 18th birthday. He turns 17 this year, which means i have a little over 1 year to get fit enough to complete the 109km cycle on a relatively hot day (from experience it's usually a scorcher). I have done it before (5 times) but the last one i did was almost 15 years ago - it will be when i cycle next year. My fastest time was a sub 3 (2h54m, to be exact). I'm not aiming for time, i just want to complete before cutoff (which i think is 7 or 8 hours). The route has 4 really big hills that a lot of people struggle with and that is why i'm calling this the year my "1000 hill challenge", but by the end of 2014 i want to have completed the following (total for each over a challenge): 1000 pushups (challenge 2)1000 squats1000 seconds of planks1000 lunges1000 box jumps1000 minutes of spinning Other things happening this year would include: Another W30 challenge or twosaving up for a December trip to the US with JV - will post once we've finalised our itinerary, although that would probably be more towards the end of the year - i love cold weather, to a point Signing up for my pole dance classeslosing some weight - i can't put a number on this, but i do have a goal of between 15 - 20kgs. More would be great, but i'm not going to be upset if it's less. Most of what i do this year will be focused around the Argus cycle tour in March 2015. Measurement Progress: Weight: 126kg | 65kg | 127.20kg | +1.20kg Bust: 132cm | 96cm | 128cm | -4cm Waist: 114cm | 73cm | 106.20cm | -7.80cm Hip: 144cm | 99cm | 146.20cm | +2.2cm Thigh: 74cm | 56cm | 72.90cm | -1.10cm Goal ultimate loss: 61kg & 140cm Loss so far: +1.20kg & -10.70cm Challenges for 2014: v2: Blaidd's 1000 Hill Challenge v2014.02: Pushups v3: Blaidd's 1000 Hill Challenge v2014.3: Squats v4: Blaidd's 1000 Hill Challenge v2014.4: Planks v5: Blaidd's 1000 Hill Challenge v2014.5: Lunges v6: Blaidd's 1000 Hill Challenge c2014.6: Starting on the back foot v7: Blaidd's 1000 Hill CHallenge v2014.7: Up Holiday Hill 2015 battle log

I used to try every new fad and stay on it for about a month and give up. I do this with every diet/workout. I am done with the miracle pills and ready to kick my own ass to get motivated. I just cannot get motivated... How do people do it. After 8 hours of work you just want to come home and eat a pizza while sitting on your recliner. I have a gym membership at Planet Fitness and they are open 24/7. Yet the only time i am motivated to go is the middle of the night when I feel I need to (but I don't) and during work while I am sitting at a desk pondering my life. I am actually confused as to lose weight. I have all of these New diets and routines that "REALLY DO WORK". but I cannot seem to stick with one long enough. When I was younger I had a great Metabolism, HUGE appetite and a whole lot of energy. THEN it all stopped...except my HUGE appetite. I never had to workout to lose weight, just to get stronger or flexible. Help me understand how this Losing weight thing works. I am up to 220 pounds and not wanting to get heavier. I am Wanting to lose about 90 pounds eventually. How many pounds a month is normal? heavy weights or light weights? Treadmills only? Small meals don't fulfill anything, will that constant need for food go away? Thank you guys.

Hey all. I am 21 years old, 5'7", and 210 pounds. I gained 60 pounds in 4 years with help of an injury, and birth control. It didn't help that my boyfriend worked at McDonald's and got me free food...constantly. Now, I am not blaming him, it is my fault for letting it go this far. I grew up with a family where fast food was regular, and salads were rare. About two years ago I hit a depression. I have always hated my body even when I was 150 pounds, but NOW I am 210 and I just feel like a blob. I know its not true but its how I see myself. I joined Nerd Fitness because of its logical sense of weight loss. No "Miricl" Pill, not starving diets and no punishment for losing a day. What hinders me is my family that eats high sodium, high calorie, high carb diets regularly and my skinny boyfriend who eats a whole family sized pizza by himself weekly.... All of them want to help but none of them want to put in the effort themselves. Its really hard for me to eat a salad while they are eating meaty spaghetti and Garlic cheese bread. Dairy Queen, Pizza, ETC. I have no one to be on my side with this. So I have joined to find someone to help and someone to help me. I would LIKE to be 130lbs. but Id be happy under 200lbs, -Alyssa

Hi all, I'm looking for an accountabilibuddy... someone to email or text with, someone to talk fitness with, and someone to cheer me on as I cheer them on! My fitness interests include yoga, hiking, dance, strength-training, and pretending that I'm running from zombies. I am working up to bodyweight strength-training, but I'm pretty limited with that at the moment. My other interests include be competitive, killing things in video games, playing music / singing, acting and making art. Bonus points if you live in New England!

To be perfectly honest, I had never heard of TDEE before this morning. After doing some research, I found out that it stands for "Total Daily Energy Expenditure", and is a gage of how many calories your body needs to function based on numerous factors (activity level, age, weight, etc). Subtracting a percentage of that (10-20%) will result in weight loss! Magic! Hooray! Ok, obviously it's not quite that simple, but it seemed like TDEE would be a good gauge for a target calorie consumption. So I ran my numbers and ended up with.... 2,610??? Through some trial and error, I've found that 1800-2000 calories results in good losses for me, though to be fair, that's largely in comparison with the 1500 area. I've never tried keeping track of calories and consuming 2600 in a day... A few factors: I am about 100 pounds overweight, tall, and young. So yes, obviously, I will need more calories than a 120 lb girl who is 5'4". Cuz, you know... Science. But 2600? That would be a 20% deficit from my "maintaining weight" target. Does that seem right? If so, am I way under-eating?

Hello all! I've lurked around the site for a few months now and i've finally got the time hit the gym more often. Background: I'm a 5'6ft 22 year-old female college student who currently weighs 261.8 lbs and after watching my weight slowly rise this past semester I've decided enough was enough. Main Quest: To lose weight and to be fit for a summer horticulture internship job that starts around May 20th 2013 Side Missions: Beginner Body Weight (3x)Cardio at the Gym (3x)Drink more waterMake my own meals for school instead of takeoutMy Gym has this thing where you can have two free sessions with a trainer and if you wish to continue then you'll discuss a payment option. I did my two session last thursday and Friday and although i don't have the money to afford the lessons (I get paid once a month via my school job), i'm glad that the trainer wrote a list of things that I could work on. I told her I wanted to lose weight and so she recommended that I do following when I go to the gym: 5-10 minute warm-up Weight Lift Cardio 30-45 minutesShe broke down weight lifting to three days and it goes like this: Day 1 Upper: Bicep CurlsTricep extensionLateral raisesPec. fly/ChestpressRear Delt machine RowLat. or fixed pulldownDay 2 Mid: Low Back/Back extensionTorso rotationAbdominalAb crunchLeg LiftsPlanks (Bent Knees hold for 20 seconds or less) Day 3 Lower: Hip AdductionGluteSeated LegLeg pressLeg extensionCalfCardio: 30-60 minutes1 hour classBuild intensity with intervals During our sessions we would mix different sections from different days so wasn't all just middle or upper arms. But a majority of these are based on machine and I was wondering if this was a good start. Thanks for reading and I can't to see what happens at the end of this challenge!

Main Quest I want to lose 25 pounds before 3/28/14 in order to fit nicely (but STILL curvaceously) into my wedding dress Three Specific Goals Run at work on my break at least 2.5 miles/3X per week Eat MORE fruit and drink at least 40oz of water EVERYDAY Complete Nerd Fitness/Crossfit workouts and least 3X/weekSide Quest Life Side Quest: Pray every day for strength, motivation and patience. I'm praying for me to stick to this because God knows I don't want to be the "chubby bride" HERE GOES NOTHING!! Yaaaay!

BATTLE LOG ENTRY 01: Today I start my pathway to fitness. I'm using the NF 6 Week Challenge as a Catalyses to make the changes I've known I need to make for a long time. In the past I've started exercising and eating better but allowed the constraints of my schedule and job become an excuse. I'm a Cinematographer for Indie Film, this career means odd work hours, long days and not the most healthy foods to eat on set. Every time I would get somewhere- Including loosing 25 pounds after 3 weeks of P90X I would let myself fall off the wagon. I would skip days because a 60 minute work out before or after a 12 hour day wasn't something I wanted to do. Or I would pick up a candy bar on set for fast energy kick instead of fruit. Before I knew it I wasn't working out at all and was gaining all the weight I lost back. No more, I need to break this schedule. I'm going to use the accountability on NF to do this. Additionally I've chosen a better program for my weight loss- P90X3 since it only 30 minute workouts. This I can do. Additionally I will ease myself into eating better. Every time before I would just cut out everything bad which left me craving them and ultimately lead me to have a 'cheat day' which would become days. My 1st Challenge Can Be Found HERE. Today is my first day of P90X3 which is Total Synergistics.

My Fellow NF Members/Rangers, This will be my first challenge as a NF Member and the first step for me in a long time to improve my fitness and over all health. MAIN GOAL: Start Healthy Habits- Kick Start Weight Loss. I'm using these first 6 week challenge to start healthy habits that in the past I have failed to solidify. This will give me the foundation to finally solidify the steps I need to take to loose weight and become a fit person. These habits include but are not limited to Regular Exercise, Better Eating Habits, Being Accountable by reporting to NF on my Battle Log. QUEST 1: Start P90X3 Classic Cycle on January 6th. This is a 6 Exercise Schedule that includes strength and cardo. In the past I tried P90X 1 which had long workouts, average 58 minutes. I had some success in loosing weight but would fall off the bandwagon due to my odd work schedule as a Cinematographer for Indie Film. This new version is 30 minutes only leaving me no excuse. I typically faltered 3 weeks in, this 6 week Challenge will force me to get 1/2 way through the 90 day schedule which will set up the habit and drive to continue all the way through the full 90 days. QUEST 2: Reduce Unhealthy Snacking/Soda Drinking. I will cut my Soda Intake to 1 A Day, replacing my cravings for it with Tea with a small amount of honey. I will vow to reach for healthy snacks- Fruit, Vegetables, etc instead of Cookies and Snack Cakes. My ultimate goal is to follow a Paleo like diet but I'm realistic to the fact that an instant change will lead to failure. I might slowly walk towards this goal. QUEST 3: Accountability: I will Report my Exercise and Eating Habits- Both Failures and Successes to NF via this and my battle log at least every other day. In the past I would hide my attempts to loose weight and get fit and that allowed me to make excuses to not do it. LIFE GOAL: Make Time Daily to do Zazen. I sit Zazen regularly from time to time and I feel more focused and relaxed when I do so. I need to make an effort to do it daily and keep myself in balance.

Lilith Level 2 Kitten (definitely not yet a Cat, or Tiger, or...) Main quest: Kitteh wants to climb higher and higher! Lilith, the chubby little kitten puts her claws into a new adventure, quite literally! She, and her brother and sister kittens are growing fast! So fast mommy cat can't always keep up with all their little tricks and adventures. Lilith is especially great at happily pouncing out of sight - just a little longer each and every time. Her slightly bigger brother, Ravi, challenges Lilith ever so often. They are the two oldest, boldest, most adventurous of the bunch and there's a constant struggle to be better! Lilith hisses at Ravi, as he's prowling after her. "Leave me alone! I have lots of stuff to do - ALONE!" and off she was. She had discovered a love for climbing things, as she's not quite the jumper yet. Whenever she was on a new high object, higher than the last, she felt like a fierce Tiger, or no, Lion! RAAAAAAAWRRRRR. There it was, a new obstacle! .... THE FLUFFY PILLOW! Lilith squints her eyes in concentration, and... Meow. *sadface* Didn't go quite as expected. Ravi, of course, parades just a bit higher than her, on a big soft chair. Grrrrrrr. (Lilith is getting quite the growling practice!) She has a plan, though. What if she got so good at climbing she could feed herself... Instead of waiting to be fed.... She would be the litter's heroine! I have to keep on trying, Lilith thought. Practice makes purrrrfect! In order to help my alter ego Lilith, I will have to work on my climbing skills, and get better! In order to do that I have three goals. Goal 1: Workout - Kitteh loves being busy! Workout 5 times a week, of which one should be actual climbing (bouldering or toprope). Workout can be anything: strenght training, Insanity, ZWOWs, other bodyweight circuits, HIIT, running, pilates. Mostly it will be bodyweight training, or with some of the makeshift weights I have, because I only workout at home. Why not climb more often than once a week? Simple, I simply don't have the money to do that. This is already stretching my budget (usually I go every other week). Goal 2: Climbing Skill Practice - Little kittens want to grow skills! Work on various skills that help with climbing - 4 times a week. This can be: - Working on grip strength - Working on pullups - Working on mobility - Working on flexibility/yoga - Working on balance (slackline, indoboard, anything) - Working on pistol squats Goal 3: Walking - Wanderlust, and adventure seeking! Walk as much as possible! This will help with the epic quest, which is stated further down below. I challenge myself to walk at least 100km during the challenge. I will track this with gps and I will not map my 'normal' walking throughout the day, only hikes in the forest or otherwise purposefully going on a walk. If I happen to exceed my expectations I will just add another 100km bar! Lets see how many I get to fill up 100%100% 3.3%3.3% Week 1 Workouts 5/5 Skill practice 4/4 Week 2 Workouts 5/5 Skill practice 4/4 Week 3 Workouts 4/5 Skill practice 4/4 Week 4 Workouts 4/5 Skill practice 4/4 Week 5 Workouts 5/5 Skill practice 5/4 Week 6 Workouts 5/5 Skill practice 4/4 Grading All three goals count equally. Goal 1: No workout missed is A, for every 2 workouts missed I lose 1 grade. Goal 2: No skill practice missed is A, for every 1 skill practice missed I lose 1 grade. Goal 3: Complete the 100km = A, every 10km less I lose 1 grade. Epic quest: From 73kg to 54kg This is definitely the ultimate motive behind all these challenges. However, I choose not to focus on weightloss or food right now. I'm recovering from binge eating disorder, and tracking those on the challenges, I noticed last time, was very triggering for me. I would rather challenge myself on what my body can DO rather than how it looks. I'm not going to post weigh-ins, but in my signature you can follow my journey to a healthy weight. Looking forward to smashing this challenge with all of you! Lilith's Catty Story part 1: http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/39452-lilith-a-chubby-kitten-looking-to-lose-weight/ (conclusion of the story at the end with the challenge summary)

After my first test (last half of the previous challenge) I am ready to do my first full challenge. Tomorrow is my regular measurement day so I will post those here and on my battle log. As a continuation from my last challenge. I will continue recording my step count, with a variation. Previously I aimed for the minimum of 10,000 steps per day averaged out over the week. This time the target is 11,500. Which will give me a distance of 9.2km per day. 9.2 x 7=64.4km per week, 64.4 x 6 = 386.4km (240 miles). This distance is the same as walking from Bag End to Weathertop, according to the table given to me by my fellow rebel Citizenkade. So I am walking to Weathertop. I also need to build some strength, I will continue my efforts in doing the Basic Body Weight Workout on the NF site. At this stage, I will be doing the squats, lunges, and planks. I broke my right hand before christmas so doing pushups and rows are out for the first couple of weeks. This will be done 3 x a week (Mon, Wed, Fri). My third goal is weight loss. The aim is to lose 3kg (6.6lb) over the challenge. My life side quest is two fold. The first is to see if I can get into the NEIS programme to help me level up my hobby business into a small business. If I get in I will be enrolled into a Cert IV in Small Business Management. If I don't qualify, I plan to enrol in a Cert IV course to enhance my employability. Either way this Lycan is going to TAFE.

Hey guys, So this is my very first post here. I've been looking at this website on and off for quite a while, as I've gone down various weightloss ventures in the past. I've yoyo-d a lot with my weight, doing all different things from calorie counting, to GF SF DF, the failsafe diet, and have gained it all back due to emotional stressors/binge eating problems, and probably the biggest one - medications I'm finally on the right track with the binge eating, I feel like I have it under control and haven't binged in a while. I've come around to embracing the paleo way of life, and it's my second day eating 100% paleo, but I've been incorporating these changes slowly for a while. A large part of my weight gain has been the insatiable hunger I experience on two different drugs I'm on for various reasons - prednisone and seroquel. I am weaning completely off the prednisone but have been on as high as 25mg/day, and have halved my seroquel dose from 200mg to 100mg/day. All the reading I've done about paleo seems to suggest that it isn't necessary to count calories, but with the increased hunger from these drugs, I'm just not sure how much to trust my body. I've put on 16 kilos in the last six months due to the drugs and binge eating. I'm a chronic calorie-counter, and use myfitnesspal to check all of my macros and total calories. I'm 200lbs, (my heaviest ever), 20 years old, and 171cm tall. I'm currently netting around 1600 calories a day tracked through myfitnesspal, but finding myself very hungry even with an increased intake of fat and protein (my ratios are about 40% fat, 40% protein, 20% or less carbs). I'm also very tired, and wondering if anyone else has experienced this when taking the plunge to full paleo. Finally, although I am undertaking this diet and lifestyle change to become healthier, and look after my body and myself better, weightloss is still a large concern for me. Even when I was a healthier weight, I've always been at the heavy end of the scales for my size and my goal weight is around 140lbs. I'm looking for advice on the calorie intake I'm currently at and whether this will be enough to see a shift in my weight, if I'm eating too much or too little, and if the calories are even that important. Currently for exercise I am just walking, at least 30 mins a day. I used to run a lot and have got the rebel running guide which is excellent, and something I want to start, but for now I'm just concentrating on cleaning up my diet and losing a bit of weight, and getting out each day for a walk. I have been diagnosed with OCPD so doing things slowly and one at a time and giving myself lenience and flexibility is incredibly difficult (it also makes not weighing myself three times a day difficult and contributes to the obsessive calorie counting), but something I am aiming to do, to make this a permanent shift and not one of the many weightloss fads I've done. Thanks in advance guys, Verit

Hello everybody, I'm so glad to have come across this awesome website and community! I'm new to working out and I would gratly appreciate any advice and recommendations you could give me. I have done a lot of research and combined my own workout routine that I think would help me achieve my goals. I wrote a bit more about myself further down. I was thinking of doing a whole body workout routine 3x a week, preferably on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The program would be as follows: Alternate every two weeks: 3 sets of 10 reps / 6 sets of 5 reps 1) Alternate: Squats or Lunges2) Barbell Bench Press3) Deadlifts4) Alternate: Pull ups or Chin Ups5) Butt Lift/Hip Raises6) Dips 7) Dumbbell Shrug8) Alternate: Exercise Ball Pull-In or Sit-Ups What do you think? DO I have everything covered or should I add or change something? (PS: Thank you for taking the time to answer me and help me out! <3) Fitness Goals To lose weight and to gain strengthExercise Preference Body weight, barbells, bar you use for budypump, bar you use for squatsCurrent Physical Stats Gender: FemaleAge: 18Height: 158cmWeight: 58kgTraining History I've done this beginner's workout program with less reps per set for two weeks: http://www.muscleandstrength.com/workouts/conditioning-workout-for-women.html. => I've mostly used 4kg-6kg weights In addition I have started the so called blogilates beginner's workout challenge (I will continue with Day 8 tomorrow): http://www.blogilates.com/calendar/beginners-calendar-for-popsters-just-starting-out , Current Diet Normal; I'm trying to aim for approximately 1500 kcal of healthy food daily, but I've been slipping up on the weekends.Current Resources/Limitations I have access to a gym and I have a fair amount of time available.

I am starting late but I didn't want to put it off any longer. My main quest for this challenge is to be able to run a mile without stopping to walk. My smaller missions are: 1.To run from zombies three times a week 2. To always use the stairs to escape the zombies. 3. To not let a noisy car attract the zombies and weigh me down when I could walk. My Life quest is to get A's in my college classes this semester.

Hey everyone! I have a question. I am currently trying to lose the last 3-4 kg. (I've already lost 13 kg) I'm really confused about the whole net calorie thing. If I consume 1800 kcal a day, but also burn 600-800 kcal a day, that makes my net calorie intake 1200-1000 which is too low. Should I then consume some extra calories even if I'm trying to lose weight? Or is it fine because I already consumed 1800 calories?

Found it... So been posting in random places since I joined until I saw the Battle logs. Will keep this one up to date from now on! Long story short - Grew up very active playing ice hockey, football, boxing and breakdance then I started Uni and all training ceased... Now, some years later and 15kg heavier I've picked it up again and determined to, not just shed the extra weight but to tone up significantly. VanDamme style! Loving the Volvo advert by the way... A fair bit of information but since it's my first post here and I started my training end of Oct/beginning of Nov I got a bit of catching up to do... Starting weight: 78.5kg Height: 172 (to make sense of my weight) Body fat %: don't know, my £5 body fat % apparatus from amazon broke. Didn't really trust it anyway. Overall plan: get weight down to 69-70kg at around Christmas time. I'm doing this by running. So far I've been running every day for around 45 min. Due to life I've missed out on 2 days although tried to recoup this by doing 2 sessions the next. The running has become a bit of an addiction I must say and loving it so far. My wife is so bored from listening to me going on about it. (Although overall very supportive Food: overall a low carb intake and with good fats. Due to previous failures I've decided not to cut out on the weekend take away. I need this for my own sanity... And I do enjoy the time shared with my wife. Mainly planning my lunch for work by cooking the evening before has been the key for me... Gone from boring sandwiches to 'homemade garlic and chili Chicken' lemon & chili cod fillets' with leafy rocket salads (*topped with peanut butter). My colleagues think I'm loosing it. I work in construction...*&^%^*%... I must say that I'm not recording my carb/cal intake. I feel this would push me over the edge and fall of the fat wagon so instead I work on the basis that if I'm 'peckish' I'm doing ok. Will have to monitor progress and maybe start recording food should I fall below my progress line. Once I'm lean - I will then change the type of workout to more lifting whilst running 2-3 mornings/week. Hopefully around 4 lifting sessions. Progress so far: This morning I weighed in at 74kg flat which is good but I've noticed (spreadsheet graph) that I'm stagnating slightly. Could be normal.. I will have to investigate. Thanks for reading guys and by all means, give me some input or advice when you see fit! I will post some weekly pics starting this afternoon... If you do what you've always done, You'll get what you've always got...

This challenge came just in time! Even if I'm a day late, I decided about 5 days ago that it's time for a change... taking Steve's advice, I started off by taking pictures & was really motivated to do something! Measurements 195lbs and 6ft (BMI 26.4) 16.9% body fat Chest 39.75in Waist 40.75in Thigh 24in Calf 17.25in Upper arm 12in Forearm 10.5in Neck 14.5in I haven't worked out in awhile (and in school, my dorm had a gym downstairs so a workout was easy) & have become complacent with my diet tracking (I love My Fitness Pal and was pretty motivated with it before). I'm a pediatrician-in-training and so that whole 80-hr-work-week thing has made non-work "life" a bit of a challenge! I used to be a "big kid" in school & was never very athletic and had been up to about 203lb at one point; in med school I was able to drop down to 168lb at the lowest and was able to fit into "skinny jeans" and really felt great! Obviously I'm rapidly heading back to towards pre-med territory and all those nice clothes I bought a couple years ago don't fit so well anymore... I'll probably end up posting more "personal info" here at some point, but it's better to aim for "something" at all instead of trying for "perfection." Main quest: to lose weight and fit comfortably into my old clothes Quest 1: workout 3-4 days a week Grading: 4 days = A, 3 days = B, 2 days = C, 1 day = D, 0 days = F Quest 2: net 1740 calories a day (as determined by My FItness Pal) - I'll take comments on this! Grading: at/under goal = A, 100 calories above = B, 200 = C, 300 = D, 400 = D, >400 = F Quest 3: take the stairs & park far away from the entrance whenever possible Grading: all stairs = A, taking elevator once a day = C, taking elevator twice a day = F (I only have two real occasions to take an elevator up during the day) Life Side Quest Pay $800 towards credit card debt I've always been a Star Trek fan (ask my parents how annoying it was for their 10 year old son to rush home so he didn't miss an episode of Voyager!) and Captain Picard is my personal hero, so let's make it so!

So, I'm going to do a Tough Mudder.... It seemed like a good idea at the time, signing up when I was a bit fitter than I am at the moment, I got injured, I put on weight....this story has probably been told a thousand times, Well, I still have this entry - I am going to do it but I do need to train... I'm going to need to learn some parkour, I'm sure as heck going to need to get stronger, I need to be able to run...not least to escape the zombies THEREFORE! Main quest challenges: Decrease bodyfat percentage to 30% or below. Because it's really difficult to climb walls, hang on monkey bars or climb whilst carrying extra. I am at around 39% now, using body measurements so I feel this is quite a challenge but hey, if it was easy it wouldn't be a worthy main challenge. Maybe. WHO KNOWS!! It's worth giving it a go anyway.To do this my three goals are: Gym at least thrice a week. Workout will be the dumbbell division workout from the Nerdfitness strength training handbook, and I will continue this workout for the whole challenge. I will aim to increase the weights of the dumbbells with each workout. In addition to the above. I will do some other form of exercise at least twice a week. This could be Zombies, run! Could be hiking / kayaking or digging...just some form of exercise. To eat well.. By this I mean aiming for 1700 healthy calories a day. Life Quest: To sort out my stuff. I have boxes of things that have not been unpacked in at least two moves! I will aim to sort or tidy for at least 15 minutes a day, or to sort through at least two boxes a week. And perhaps the most important question of all: What's my motivation? Well, I feel that my weight is not effecting my health but I don't like what I see when I look in the mirror!

Ho'kay so this will be my first quest as a Druid, but I believe I'm in the right place! Main goal is Confidence. It has been a constant struggle for me but I'm really excited about working on it. To achieve my goal my 3 side quests will be 1. Continue the path I started. 1a. Follow Paleo 1b. Workout 3 times a week 1c. Wake up by 9am 6 days a week 2. Build habits and form routines. 2a. Learn a healthy morning exercise and do it 3 times a week 2b. Find a cardio you like or do some cardio 3 times a week 2c. Find a routine to keep my house clean 2d. Eat a meal at least twice a day 3. Increase positivity in my life 3a. Learn more about yoga and implement it into the daily routine. 3b. Set a goal every week to challenge myself (ask a girl out, go to a yoga class) 3c. Limit my crutches (cut back on drinking and smoking) So I started at my first challenge around 265, I currently weigh 243. I really need help with positivity and not overthinking everything people say to me. I need to work on building stronger relationships so I feel less alone but I also need to work on being happy by myself. I really want to be more involved on this forum so I'm really glad I'm in a guild. If you feel any sort of connection with my goals or struggles please follow or add me or both, I'll be needing all the insight to life anyone has to offer. I can't wait to start this adventure with everyone!

This is my first challenge ever, and I'm really excited to see how this goes. So, let's get down to business: The ultimate goal: Lose inches I've spent a lot of time worrying about the number on the scale, which I've realized recently just makes me crazy. I want to start lifting weights more to try to build up some strength, but I don't want to get too bulky (I'm female). How is this going to happen?! - Go to boxing class at least 3 days a week - Go to the gym and do a minimum of 25 minutes of cardio and 30 minutes of lifting on days when I do not attend class - Eat a clean diet Life Quest: Stop beating myself up for failures and attempt to turn them into learning experiences. The motivation: My family has never had a healthy lifestyle, which has made it extremely difficult for me to commit to being healthy. Out of my immediate family, I am the only one who has never been considered obese or had an eating disorder. I want to show everybody that it is possible to commit to being healthy and enjoy the benefits more than the "sacrifices." I also really want my clothes to fit better. I have all of these really pretty outfits that I can't wear anymore and I'd love to be able to wear them again. Plus, I want to be confident when I go to buy clothes. I never buy clothes because I have to work towards drawing attention away from certain parts, like my arms and my stomach. I want to feel confident wearing a tank top! Woot. Here I go. I will post measurements and such later.

Main Quest: I want to be fit by forty. My main goals are weight loss and building strength. My goal weight is currently 125 lbs which I hope to attain by May 2014. However, I may revise that as I am aiming for strong and fit as opposed to skinny and weak. At the end of this challenge I would like to weigh 160 pounds or less. I would also like to be able to do one un-assisted chin up by the end of this challenge. I can currently only do 1-2 chin-ups with 2 resistance bands. Challenge Goals: Do barbell or bodyweight workout 3x per week I plan on beginning the Starting Strength program once all my home gym equipment is in place and assembled. I hope to get this started by the second week of this challenge(11/17). In the meantime, I will continue the Rebel Fitness Workouts(currently Level 3 Outcast) Chin-ups will be done at each workout. Grading: | A | 18-16 workouts | B | 15-14 workouts | C | 13-12 workouts | D | 11-10 workouts | F | < 10 workouts Do 30 minutes of cardio 2x per week Currently this is run/walk intervals on the treadmill, but I reserve the right to substitute other activities. Grading: | A | > 323 minutes | B | > 287 minutes | C | > 251 minutes | D | > 215 minutes | F | <= 215 minutes Keep a food journal and stay within my calorie and macro goals. I’ll be grading myself on the amount over or under my goal for total calories(1350-1750 per day) and for the amount under my goals for protein(133 grams per day), and fiber(35 25 grams per day). I reserve the right to re-evalute these goals mid-challenge once I've begun the Starting Strength program. I will be grading the weekly average. Weekly Grade Calories:| A | +/- 0-50 | B | +/- 51-100 | C | +/- 101-150 | D | +/- 151-200 | F | +/- >201 Weekly Grade Protein:| A | > 120 grams | B | > 107 grams | C | > 94 grams | D | > 81 grams | F | < 81 grams Weekly Grade Fiber:| A | > 23 grams | B | > 20 grams | C | > 17 grams | D | > 14 grams | F | < 12 grams Motivation: I want to be fit by forty! (Not fat AND forty) Life Side Quest: I need to do a better job of tracking and evaluating my son's insulin usage and blood sugar history. (He is 10 and has Type 1 Diabetes)To do this, I will download the data from his blood sugar meter and insulin pump once per week, evaluate the results, and make any necessary modifications. Grading: | A | 6 downloads | B | 5 downloads | C | 4 downloads | D | 3 downloads | F | < 3 downloads Starting Statistics(pounds and inches) (to be filled in on Sunday 11/10) Age | 39 years 10 months | Height | 60 | Date | 11/10/2013 | Weight | 165.8 | BF % | 35.6 |(measured with caliper) Bust | 40 | Chest | 35.75 | Waist | 35.75 | Hips | 43.25 | L Thigh | 26.5 | L Calf | 15.5 | L Upper Arm | 13.1 | Neck | 14 |

Welcome! My name is Alex. I'm a 25 year old test engineer. I live in the desert of AZ and love it. I'm here at NF to get motivated, stay motivated, and motivate other people. This place is very special and unique, and I can't believe I just found it. This place rocks and has really pushed me to keep going. This is me: I started taking charge of my health on July 2012, but I don't take many photos (not because of my weight, just don't) so I didn't have something to compare to when I actually started, but I was fairly steady for many years. I'm now at around 215 lbs. My motivation is my wife and newborn son. I want to look the best for my wife. And I want to live a long time and set a strong example of a man for my son. They are everything to me, and I feel I should be the best for them. And being nice and hardworking isn't enough. Plus if I'm dead, I can't do anything. Second plus, it doesn't hurt to be dead sexy, see what I did there GOALS 1). Nutrition (STR +1, CON +2, STA +1) This is the most important thing. I eat Primal 90% of the time. Why? Because it works. I care not of the mumbo jumbo about cavemen, I care about results. So far I've felt the best eating no grains and minimal cheese. My energy is better, my digestive health is better, and I don't worry too much about calories because I don't eat enough as it is. This last thing needs to change. After speaking with Donar on his thread. I will need to find my maintenance and work from there. I'm going to shoot for a 40/40/20 PRO/CHO/FAT split to do this. More details to follow. This will be a 3 week assessment and then a change towards a deficit. Thanksgiving Weekend will not count towards this challenge. Ok, this is changing a bit. Right now, there is no way in hell I could succeed at this. The baby is takes up too much of my wifes time for her to plan out and prepare meals and she's the big reason for my success. I don't mind helping with this at all, but with my always changing schedule it's hard to plan and prepare every day. Instead I will focus on eating what I normally eat (since I'm losing weight) and track everything as best as possible. This will give me something to make better decisions with for a stricter diet. Sorry Donar! I do plan to meet a calorie goal and macros for the next challenge. The boy will be older giving mom more time to do meal prep while I work. I will hopefully start a real lift program to accompany that diet. God I miss the barbell. Grading: Track food intake except for 3 days = A Track food intake except for 6 days = B Track food intake except for 9 days = C Track food intake except for 12 days = D Track food intake except for 15 days = F 2). BBWW (STR +3, STA +2, Bonus: STR +1) I don't have time to start a real lifting program with the newborn. I really want to do Starting Strength since I love lifting weight but I can't swing that now. If I can't commit I won't do it. I will explore it some during this challenge to see if the gym nearby can work for me. So instead I will do a BBWW workout and modify as I get better at it. Right now the weak spot is push ups. I will likely add to it as well. I am starting at least two sets, MWF. I will list the work out for each day. Grading: 18 WO = A 15 WO = B 12 WO = C 9 WO = D 7 WO = F A point will be shifted from Nutrition to BBWW if I can complete full sets of push ups. If not the point will remain with the Nutrition category. 3). Running (STA +2, DEX +2, BONUS: STA +1) I have my first 5k race on Dec 8th. It is the Hot Chocolate Run in Phoenix. Supposed to be fun. During the last challenge I completed my C25K program, and the baby was born right before I was going to do a full 5k run. I have since completed one at a 11:30 pace (slower than I was running before baby boy arrived). This goal is about continuing running to keep conditioning and get faster. How will I do this? At least one long run (5k) and one "other" run. This last run will likely be some interval training to increase speed. Or a shorter run (2 miles) while trying to run faster. I will confer with the running folks if this is acceptable way to pick up my pace. Your thoughts? Grading: 12 Runs = A 10 Runs = B 8 Runs = C 6 Runs = D 4 Runs = F A point will be shifted from the life goal into the running goal if I can improve my 5k pace to under 10:30 min/mile. Otherwise it will stay in the life goal. LIFE GOAL). Ace the Class! (WIS +1, CON +1) This is a continuation of my previous challenge. I need to boost my GPA in my Master's Program. I have a 2.7 GPA (stupid B-) and my other transfer credit classes don't count towards it. So I need at least a B+ to continue in the program. After that I'm still on thin ice. Currently have a 83% in the class. I was hoping to boost it in the midterm but I got an 84%. It really sucks that despite being above average I'm still failing. This week (Nov 4th) is a bonus week and will be a try out period. WO don't count, but they will proof out the concept and see if something isn't working. Feel free to comment, suggest and ask any questions!

Hello! Perhaps some seasoned low-carbers can point me in the right direction. Finding I wasn't losing weight after going paleo, I decided to be more careful with carbs and briefly go into ketosis, just to see the effects. I was in ketosis for just under a week, losing 8 pounds (I now weigh 126 pounds), and was pleased with the results. Unfortunately, I managed to knock myself out of ketosis by eating too many cashews, and, while interested in cyclic low-carbing, would rather not undergo another couple of days of unpleasant symptoms this moment to get back into ketosis. So here is my problem. How do I eat enough carbs to avoid the low carb flu-y headache that prevents me from exercising, but keeps my carbs low enough to keep seeing weightloss? What kind of snacks should I eat? When eating carbs is it ok to eat some fruit, or is it better to rely on starchy vegetables for this? Presumably, one should dial down fats if slightly uping carbs? Confused. I just want this headache to go!