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Becoming a Norse Warrior - LEVEL 1 (part 2) “I’m not afraid I’m not alone I feel in my veins Desire rage I’m awoken, I’m awoken Night of the warriors I’m awoken, I’m awoken Everything inside me I’m awoken, I’m awoken Theory of madness I’m awoken, I’m awoken This is my final stand” Becoming a Norse Warrior - LEVEL 1 Welcome to the next level of my challenge! Technically it stays the same, I am just gonna continue what I was doing previously. I am gonna report about my progress casually and post some motivational stuff and music too. If you support me, I’ll try my best to return the favour. Let’s unite our powers! I am gonna level up on the path of a warrior. These are the values of the Vikings’ Code of Values I am gonna pursuit and how I am gonna do it: 1. Strength “It takes a certain kind of warrior to be able to row for hundreds of miles on the open seas and then go raiding for riches. Raw power is necessary, along with endurance and functional strength. Having a physical presence and mental fortitude was essential in surviving.” Strength: -Full body home workout with dumbbells 3 kg 2 times a week, cardio 1-2 times a week - abs exercise (10 min) - Do exercise to strengthen the joints every day (was injured recently, need to prevent future disasters) (10 min) -Eat garlic every day (if anyone has any advice about other effective ways to boost the immune system, let me know) 2. Discipline “Discipline, again as part of a total way of life, refers to self-discipline. If one is going to live by ones own standards, they are responsible for and must be willing to control your own actions. “ Always do what is planned unless seriously sick or unwell. Never slack off - especially studying. Study every day for at least half an hour and more on the weekend. 3. Courage The Vikings were known for their courage and bravery in battle. Courage actually applied to every part of ones life. It take courage to do what you know is right, especially when those around you disagree with your point of view.” Do at least one thing that scares you. 4. Self-Reliance “Warriors are by nature independent beings, they strive to ensure that they don’t have to depend on others for their survival. Indeed family was at the center of Viking life. A Viking is responsible for taking care of himself and his family; this is his first and foremost duty in life. Being frugal and prepared for hardship, as with a long upcoming winter, was an important part of being self-reliant.” Don’t spend more than 1000 yuan (it is 156 American dollars) for personal expenses every month. Save the rest for future adventures and possible hardships. 5. Stay in tune with the gods “The Vikings had a deep connection to nature, to the Earth and the phases of the moon, and Norse spirituality has many similarities with shamanism around the world.” Turn off your phone for two hours a day (on the weekend). Admire the nature. Connect with it and search for that feral feeling deep within. Reach to your roots, to the roots of humanity.

Hey guys, I'm a 32-year-old male and was wondering is it fine to take testosterone specifically for when I work out?. Hope to hear from someone soon Thanks in advance

Hi, I am new here, i just joined the community today. I am looking forward to meeting people who enjoy working out like me. I typically workout 30-60 minutes for a week. I am looking to get in shape and have a body fat percentage of 15%, yet right now it is at 21%. Over the past few days, I have doing mostly calisthenics in 3 sets of eight circuits with weight lifting using 15 lb weights, training for pull-ups (still working to complete one, but making progress because I can lift myself half-way to the bar) and running 2.5 miles each day. I am also working toward doing a cartwheel, handstand, forward roll and also self-defense techniques like tai chi I am also eating healthier with eating more fruits and vegetables, moderate protein and carbohydrates. I feel happy with my choices, yet I am still looking forward to become more in shape. Currently I feel like I fit in the Ranger class, yet I would like to work my way up to the Assassin or Monk class. If anyone has any ideas on yoga moves, gymnastic moves, martial arts, or anything that would help me build my strength, flexibility, coordination and stamina, feel free to post your ideas. I would love to hear your ideas; I have already learned a lot and enjoy the positive encouragement that I have seen in reading the nerdfit articles and forum posts. I hope to make friends and let's encourage each other to be fit. I am compassionate and understanding and since I used to be bullied in middle school, I am not judgmental and am working on building my self-confidence and feeling and looking fit. I am now 18 years old and a senior in high school and I want to be a military police or gene therapy scientist.

INTRODUCTION: My name is Ted and this is my second challenge. I am looking forward to being a part of the assassins during during challenge 44. If you are interested, my first challenge thread can be found here. When I found Nerd Fitness, I joined the academy first. I was searching for how to build intrinsic motivation into a fitness routine and Nerd Fitness came across my path. Thanks to my first challenge, I am getting closer to my goal of intrinsically motivate fitness. My hard work and my look into essentialism has really helped me focus my efforts. I chose the assassins because I enjoy bouldering, calisthenics, and balance work done through yoga. I want to build a learner stronger frame. People I admire and look to as I train would be Kevin Poeung and Simon Park. I am a 33 year old English and History teacher and live in San Francisco, CA with my husband and our orange bob-tail cat named Cha-cha. We have been in the Bay Area for about a year. Before California, my husband and I were living in Japan (I was there for seven years and he was there for his whole life). I am a lover of science fiction and have been a fan of all the Star Gate seasons which is why my topic titles reference the dialing sequence. These challenges are a way I can take back control of my dreams by making my fitness and health a priority in my life. I am excited about doing this for myself and glad I have gained some great support and friends along the way. MAIN QUEST: I will have an active life full of movement and activities I find joy in so I can live a life of peace and adventure with my husband. CHALLENGE GOAL 1: "Be-Four Dawn" GOAL: By 14 December 2015, I will exercise for a least thirty minutes in the morning, at least four days a week, for a total of 24 workout sessions over the course of the challenge. REASONING: During the last challenge, I scheduled a workout everyday of the week. On any given day, I was either practicing yoga or doing the body brigade workout. This left little to no time for recovery. This challenge, I am giving myself three days for potential recovery. I also want to work towards enjoying morning workouts since I can take full advantage of the after-burn over the course of the day and be more energized. I also would like to have my evenings open in order to spend more time with my husband. Up until now, getting up early in the morning and working out has been difficult for me. I am a teacher and wake-up really early already. MEANS OF EVALUATION: I will post on my thread the details of each workout for the previous week by Sunday evening of that week. The details of my workout will include the time started, duration, and what I did to workout. If I have at least 24 workouts recorded by the end of this challenge, I will have met this goal. [Attribute: STAMINA A=+3 B=+2 C=+1] CHALLENGE GOAL 2: "Pull It Together" GOAL: By 14 December 2015, I will work for 10 minutes, at least four days a week, on my training to do a complete, unassisted, pull-up for a total of 24 sessions over the course of this challenge. REASONING: I have enjoyed bouldering and have some pretty solid upper body strength. Unfortunately, I do not have the muscle strength needed to do a complete unassisted pull-up. Systematically working on my pull-ups throughout this challenge will help me build the needed strength in order to get close to doing an unassisted pull-up. MEANS OF EVAULUATION: I will post on my thread the details of each training session for the previous week by Sunday evening of that week. The details of the training session will include what I did to train and the time I started. If I have at least 24 training sessions on my thread by the end of the challenge, I will have met this goal. [Attribute: STRENGTH A=+4 B=+3 C=+2] CHALLENGE GOAL 3: "This End Up" GOAL: By 14 December 2015, I will work for 10 minutes, at least four days a week, on my inverted poses foundation for a total of 24 sessions over the course of this challenge. REASONING: In my practice of yoga, I have always felt inspired by inverted poses. In the beginning, I had a fear of going into an inverted pose. I thought, if I went into an inverted pose, I would drop on my spine and break my neck. Several years back, I trampled that fear by running into a handstand. The momentum of this method got me into a wall-assisted hand-stand. I want to work toward doing an unassisted tripod headstand. To do this I will need to work on building my foundation on a consistent basis. MEANS OF EVALUATION: I will post on my thread the details of each foundation building session for the previous week by Sunday evening of that week. The details of the foundation building session will include what I did toward building the right foundation and the time I started. If I have at least 24 training sessions on my thread by the end of the challenge, I will have met this goal. [Attribute: A=+4 B=+3 C=+2] LIFE CHALLENGE GOAL: "Write On Track" GOAL: By 14 December 2015, I will write over 40,000 words towards a new novel which I will plan with my husband. REASONING: My husband is an illustrator and a graphic designer. We have been playing around with the idea of me writing a novel and him drawing illustrations for the story. We have floated ideas and concepts around but never got anything seriously together. Since November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), and this challenge covers the month of November, I thought I would inspire our project to head in the "write" direction and get my husband and I "write" on track towards completing our novel. MEANS OF EVALUATION: I will have met this goal if I have written at least 40,050 words on my novel by the end of this challenge. My word-count progress can be seen on my NaNoWriMo page. I will also give weekly updates on Sunday evening on how I am progressing towards the 40,000 word goal. [Attribute: WISDOM A=+3 B=+2 C=+1] PRE-REFLECTION: Setting new goals fills me with such great energy. I feel geared-up and ready to begin. I feel even better this time around since I have already engaged in one challenge and know my goals are challenging yet attainable. Learning what works well for me and what needs tweaking I believe will help me towards an intrinsically motivated practice. I am proud to be part of the assassins and growing stronger with everyone!

Two words....Depression sucks.... It's been a while since I last did a challenge on NF. Honestly I miss it! I've made amazing friends on here and I have come a long way from where I first started. As you can see from my before pictures, I was overweight. And those pictures are after I had lost some weight already. I joined NF, lost weight, and turned my life around. Although, it started out in a healthy direction, I ended up just a year ago in a really unhealthy spot. I was hardly eating (the most I ate was 800 calories, but that wasn't constant), obsessively working out till I would almost pass out, not really sleeping, and abusing my body because I genuinely hated myself. My self esteem was really low. I was doing a lot of things that only made my mental stability worse, But God really stuck with me even though I was convinced He just didn't care about me. I turned to Him again after talking to a guy online. We both realized that although we called ourselves Christians, we didn't really follow God like we should have been. Working together to get our sights back on God, we grew closer together. Which is funny because when I first started talking to him I really hated his guts hahaha. I just assumed he was a jerk because I firmly believed all men wanted one thing, and that's all he wanted. But he didn't and God was pushing me towards him because I was meant to be with him. We did a long distance courtship that was brief, and were married April of this year. I've been better because of it. My husband really works hard to make me happy and remind me that I am worth more than what I had led myself to believe. We are expecting a baby in Jan 1st and we are so excited! That's a brief look at what's happened to me ever since I joined NF. And right now I want to start another challenge to keep going in trying to be better. I need to be better for my husband and baby. So Goal #1: Be consistent with working out. There is a gym in the apartment complex, and I have Pilates on Youtube. But lately I have been letting some depression hit me hard and neglect my work outs. A. Workout more than 3x in one week B. Make it only to 2x in one week C. 1 visit to the gym in a week F. Nothing all week Goal #2: Eat better. I haven't been eating as much as I should be for the baby. And when I do it's hardly any veggies which is important. So I want to add veggies, protein, fruit, and the right amount of carbs to every one of my meals. Along with eating small snacks to keep the little one happy. A. Eat 6x a day, and all meals are healthy B. Eat 4x a day, meals are still healthy C. Eat 3x a day, meals are OK F. Eat 2x a day Goal #3: Read my Bible everyday. I need to be giving everything to God. And it's tough, because I don't ever like to admit I need help. Asking for help emotionally is a weakness that my mom would not have. You just got over it. But that's not healthy at all and it just makes me crash harder. Reading the Bible is a great stress relief for me, and I want to open up to my husband more to. Both will get me through everything. A. Read everyday for a week B. Miss 2 days of reading C. Miss 4 days of reading F. Miss 5 days or more of reading Life Goal: Stand with my husband and not let my parents push us apart. My parents are visiting us Tuesday, and I have an OK relationship with them so far. But my husband doesn't really care for them because he's seen how they have treated me. My older sisters are their favorites, and I'm the one to take care of everything because they know my personality is to be the doormat. Something I was so used to, I didn't see anything wrong with it until my husband and pastor showed me it wasn't healthy or OK. They don't like my husband really, and that's because he actually will call them out on their bull and stand up to them. Something my mom especially doesn't like. So they will talk to me only now, because I usually will cave in to them. Which causes a rift between my husband and I. I am determined not to let that happen with they arrive. I want to stand with my husband when they arrive and not let their games push me back to being the old me. Well that's my challenge! How is it?

INTRODUCTION: My name is Ted and this is my first challenge. I joined the academy first. I was searching for how to build intrinsic motivation into a fitness routine and Nerd Fitness came across my path. I soon stumbled upon the Rebel Forums and have been finding my way around here. I love the positive energy and the team atmosphere. I am a 33 year old English and History teacher and live in San Francisco, CA with my husband and our orange bob-tail cat named Cha-cha. We have been in the Bay Area for about a year. Before California, my husband and I were living in Japan (I was there for seven years and he was there for his whole life). Getting settled into a new country, job, and way of life caused my fitness to not be a priority. This is my way of taking back control and making fitness and health a priority in my life. I am excited about doing this for myself and possibly gaining some friends and strong support along the way. MAIN QUEST: I will have an active life full of movement and activities I find joy in so I can live a life of peace and adventure with my husband. CHALLENGE GOAL 1: “YOU LOOK LIKE A TALL GLASS OF WATER†GOAL: During this six week challenge, 14 September 2015 to 25 October 2015, I will choose only between water and tea for my beverages. Reasoning: Drinking, in my mind, has always had a social component. When friends are having a drink, or go out for a cup of coffee, I always join them and drink as well. I found in August that I was dependent on caffeine more than I would like. I would enjoy drinking black coffee and would often get too much caffeine as I drank several cups throughout the day. Alcohol has begun to make me too tired. Even after one or two glasses of wine or beer, I would be so tired I would just need to take a nap. I do not like this after effect and feel I would be happier without alcohol. Though I am not abstaining from coffee or alcohol permanently, this challenge will help me see my life without these two liquids for an extended period of time. I will also be able to see how I can socialize without drinking the same beverage as everyone else. Means of Evaluation: My daily logs on the NF forums will have a reflection component about beverages. If all 42 of these logs show that I have only consumed water and tea as my beverage choices during the challenge, I will have met my goal. [Attribute: Constitution A=+2 B=+1 C=+.5] CHALLENGE GOAL 2: “DON’T WORRY, I’M FLEXIBLE†GOAL: During this six week challenge, 14 September 2015 to 25 October 2015, I will complete at least three yoga classes a week, from the website YogaToday, for a total of at least 18 classes during the challenge. Reasoning: I am on the quest to build a fitness routine that becomes intrinsically motivated. Yoga, along with bouldering, are one of the activities I am drawn to. Unfortunately, I have not made my practice of yoga a priority. Setting this goal will allow me to show myself that I am making yoga a priority in my life. Means of Evaluation: I will report each yoga class I take on the NF forum by posting a link to the class I did in my daily log. If I have at least 18 classes recorded, at least three a week, I will have met my goal. [Attribute: Dexterity A=+3 B=+2 C=+1] QUEST GOAL 3: “EVERY THING WILL WORK OUT!†GOAL: During this six week challenge, 14 September 2015 to 25 October 2015, I will work out at least four times a week, for a total of at least 24 workouts during the challenge. Reasoning: As with my yoga goal, I am working on building an intrinsically motivated fitness routine. Needing to build strength through self-efficacy, this goal will allow me to get closer to my ultimate goal. I want to do most of my workouts in the morning with the possibility of working out in the late afternoon. Means of Evaluation: I will log my progress on the NF forums and give the details of each workout on my NF challenge thread. If I have logged at least 24 workouts, at least four weekly, by the end of the six week challenge, I will have met this goal. [Attribute: Stamina A=+3 B=+2 C=+1] LIFE QUEST: “YOU’RE HISTORY!†GOAL: I will study world history for at least 30 minutes a day during the six week challenge which takes place from 14 September 2015 to 25 October 2015. Reasoning: I am an English and History teacher and constantly want to improve my knowledge of history to help my teacher practice as well as my own research. I am working on studying for exams in order to add specific items to my current teaching certification. Means of Evaluation: I will keep track of my studying through daily logs on NF forums detailing what subject I have studied. I will also register for a history exam by the end of the six week challenge. If I studied for at least for at least 42 session, at least 30 minutes a day, I will have met my goal. [Attribute: Wisdom A=+3 B=+2 C=+1] I am excited to get started and join everyone!

I know that you can't lose belly fat by doing ab workouts. I also know that if you work out a muscle it will help shed fat around it. How come these two facts can't coexist, or I've been told

Hello All, New here, but a frequent "lurker". I am not sure where this post belongs as it has a few questions, both in relation to wanting to lose body fat but also my lifting/exercise. I am looking to lose weight 23y/o about 5"4 - not sure about weight or bf% atm (last weigh I was 70-72kg). I was following a keto diet up until recently I realised it made my binge-eating really bad and generally, I just wasn't happy. Now I am kinda just eating "primal" (i.e mainly fruit and veg) but also kinda just letting myself have a treat now and then, and not berating myself over it... 80/20.. making sure I get enough protein.. I want to lose some body fat - but I am not sure how much I should be eating (atm tempted by 5:2 just because if I go overboard one day I might feel like I balance it out.. ) and all calculators etc are different. I sort of have a desk job, I have a 20 minute walk to/from work, and although I sit down a lot during the day I am often walking around the office, 2-3/5 days I am lifting boxes of paper, packs of waters, boxes etc. I do a circuit class on Sundays, have a 1/2hr PT session once a week where we are currently doing circuits and I workout on my own 2-3 times ..atm heavy lifts followed by some isolation or kettle bell stuff and sometimes cardio.. I was eating 1800cals (total daily not net) - but also having binges so I can't say whether this worked.. I generally prefer eating like say a lower cal number (BMR?) and then when I worked out eat the extra calories so my net = that cal.. I don't like aiming for the same everyday.. Not sure what to do with my lifting as well whilst I calories deficit and really work at it.. Deadift: 100kg (1RM) Squat: 70kg (3RM) Bench: I can do 5x5 47.5kg but I did do 50kg although I think my PT held a lot of it - I am not that confident with this.. OHP: 30kg (5RM) Row: 40kg (5RM) I am currently doing a 5/3/1 sort of thing with my compounds and then any assistance work is 4 sets 8reps.. is this okay to continue? I know I might not hit PRs etc whilst eating less. but atm I wanna focus on fat loss as I can tell I have good muscle tone developing and I know I am quite strong.. Any input or help will be greatly appreciated - kinda on the verge of giving up and feeling like I will never shed the fat! x

Main Goal of the challenge: Lose 4 pounds. Hi my name is Angie and this is my first challenge of 2014. My year's main goal will be to focus on lose weight and making healthy choices in regards to my eating habits and exercise habits. I have been successful in other challenges in the past that focused on college applications and developing healthy habits such as sleeping more, drinking more water, less junk food, etc. But I never made weight loss a priority. This will be an adventure for me! I currently weigh 214 pounds. For this challenge I am hoping to lose four pounds or lose "some" inches, I am still figuring how to measure and have reasonable amount of inches to lose in a six week period. If anyone has suggestions please let me know! Here are my four goals to help me achieve the weight loss. Current stats: Age: 29 Weight: 214 Size: 18 #1) Eating Hobbit Sized Portions! I do have a active lifestyle but a not so active boyfriend. I tend to eat pretty healthy (lots of veggies, meat, and a small quantity of carbs when I am by myself). However, I don't make the best of choices when I am around other people. A lot of my weight gain has to do with my thoughts. I try to eat what other people eat in terms of quantity. So let's just face the facts. I'm a short, would be petite if it wasn't for the weight, kind of girl. So I have decided first to do portion control when I eat out and yes I do eat out. Currently, I make 2 of my meals and would like to eventually make my third at home but that hasn't happened yet so instead when I do eat out I will order off the children's menu, the smaller portion's menu, or the under 500 calories menu. Regular grade scale applies! No cheats! Stats: +1 Sta, +2 Wis #2) Defeat caffeine spiders. Previously my challenges were to defeat soda and then Starbucks coffee. I could do one but not the other. Now I want to defeat BOTH! Cheats: Week 1: 3 Week 2: 2 Week 3: 2 Week 4: 1 Week 5: 1 Week 6: 0 Grades: A = 33 Days B = 30 Days C = 27 Days D = 24 Days F = Below 21 Stats: +1 Sta, +2 Con #3) Prepping for the journey to the Lonely MountainI already dance twice a week (4 hours), lift one day a week (1 hour), and run one day a week (45 minutes). But I really want to do something everyday for a minimum of 30 minutes. Even if it's just walking or something. I will be doing this in the wee hours of the morning like 6AM. So let me accomplish them. Regular grade scale applies! No cheats! Stats: +2 STA +STR +1 DEX Life QuestI didn't get accepted into 3 of the schools that I applied to. I am still waiting on one. So what the hell am I going to do now?Develop Plan B - Plan FUpdate resumeFigure out savings plan https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9I8Dtbdhad4Z1RiT1U1djFkYkU/edit?usp=sharing <-- Where I keep track

Hello Fellow Rebels (that's fun to say =P) Smilen here with a pre 3 week update and some pictures! I had started a 3 week challenge to change my diet and work out every day because I had joined in the festivities of Nerd Fitness halfway through the current challenge period. Instead of waiting, I decided to take some action and get some habits going (21 days toward habit creation right?) So, come this Friday 7/12, I will have 3 weeks of consistently eating Paleo (with 1 or 2 slips ups that left me feeling pretty sick) and doing the body weight workout along with Intervals every other day (weight lifting one day, interval the next, repeat). I am incredibly pleased, not only with my consistent effort, but my results as well! I now have muscles popping up in places that never really had before, and am more confident with my body then I have ever been. I feel healthier and my skin has been clearing up (I had pretty bad and self-esteem lowering acne on my face for the past 3 months). I am now speaking the magic of Paleo and working out to anyone who will listen and I know I am making an impact on my friends mindset and lifestyle as well. Attached are Pictures of the beginning of my venture and then a 2 week after shot of my improvements. The quality is so-so and the lightning got crazy in the second set (WOAH GREEN), but I kind of like it. I cropped the pictures so that I could fit all of them. I will be taking more pictures this Friday and then start my new challenge!

Ok so I have posted before about finding time to exercise and I just ended up kicking my ass into gear. I will be waking up to do it if I do not have time at night PLUS I have been taking advice about fitting in push ups here and squats there. So Yay to myself for leveling up. Now, I am writing because I have been in a plateau for weeks. I have lost little to non on inches. Weight...stopped. I am hoping that with the added exercise I will be triggering the weight loss again. But I can't help but be bummed that I got stuck 2 months in. I have lost a total of 18lbs and 2 1/2 dress sizes. Which is great! But I don't want to get stuck here. I want to go all the way! Now what discourages me is I noticed this all happened when I lost time to WO and my thyroid meds were reduced. Those in my family know my thyroid has been nothing but a thorn in my side. It has been one of the big reasons I have had a hard time with weight, health, etc. Because as you know the thyroid pretty much controls everything...well not everything but you know what I mean. I am reaching out to you rebels who have a thyroid problem and have overcome the obstacles it throws at us. How did you figure out what was wrong, and what to change? I am at a level and weight I have been stuck in previous years. Never have I been smaller then this. Size 12. When I was 14 years old, I was 8...but oh to dream. Again, hoping adding more exercise and healthy fats will turn this around but what if it doesn't? Thanks in advance to all you awesome rebels!

So this is my first challenge, and I'll appreciate input from the Rebellion. (Repost from Challenge goals thread) I'm focusing on forming new habits, in fitness and eating. I think I should start small, because it's a long journey, and I don't want to break down partway. 1. Form a solid, three workout days a week schedule. This includes doing 10 minutes of yoga 3 times a week ( 7.5 minutes for flexibility, 2.5 minutes for abs); Angry Birds workout twice a week, and going to the gym three times a week (I've been averaging twice a week, and sometimes thrice so far). I started this this week, and the schedule is as follows: - Tuesday morning - Modified Angry Birds workout - Tuesday evening - Circuit at my gym - Curves - Thursday - same as Tuesday - Saturday - Curves circuit. This might actually be [No more] 2 goals in one. 2. Eating - I've gone paleo, not full paleo, but I cut out grains, breads, sugar, and most processed foods. The processed "foods" I use are powdered chai tea, unsweetened almond milk, kefir - plain and strawberry, kettle corn[these were a pretty easy stretch, since I've decided that it's my time to lose weight], spices, etc. I'm not sure if I can list them all. Now to keep that up for the next six weeks. In order to keep up with this, and increase my veggie intake, I'm thinking of the following schedule: - Saturdays - Buy meat, veggies and fruit from farmers market & grocery store - Chop up veggies for the week, and make veggie & fruit smoothies. Not sustainable, and I'm not passionate about them, so I'm crossing those out. Going the extra mile would be marinating the relevant meats. - Sunday - Make breakfasts and lunches for the work week. I've been sorta doing this for the past few months, but just for three days because I feared getting bored with eating the same things. If I make three dishes, this may be avoided. But I'll start with two. [These are pretty sustainable, are a stretch, and I'm happy to do them since it saves me money] 3. Start and maintain a food journal. I also started this this week. 4. Life goal: Focus on enjoying the new changes in my life. Rather than wallowing in guilt for not being able to bound up the mountain, I'll revel in making progress in small steps up that mountain. I may not have studied like I want to, but I'm expending willpower saying no to foods I should not eat, and working out even when I don't want to. So I'll take +1 WIS and Fireflower now. Start studying for an exam I've been putting off. I'm not sure if this won't be too much for me, because studying takes so much time. So it's either studying, or cleaning up my apartment. I already have a plan for this, so that might be the most appropriate goal, at least until I'm settled in my new eating and working out habits. [Well I've taken care of cleaning my apartment, and lately I've been feeling like I don't have any willpower left for studying, but it's still gnawing at me. Any advice here?] If I'm understanding this correctly, we have 15 points to distribute in the attributes right? So I'll distribute mine as follows: 1. +1 STR +1 DEX +2 STA 2. +3 CON +2 STA 3. +1 CON + 2 WIS 4. +1 STR +1 WIS +1 CHA (The +1 STR is for mental strength, since half of this fight is mental after all.) All this PLUS the win from the Mini Challenge #1 - +1 WIS and one FireFlower Yippee! Since this is still undefined I don't know what I can do here.

Totally got a job at the gym I attend. Hoping this will lead to me getting eve more lifting in to me daily regimen. Hoping to get the most huge, and lift all the weights! I call this a win!

For the longest time, every time I work out everything pops. Pushups? Shoulders crack. Squats? Knees sound like popcorn. Stretching cracks my back like somebody playing the xylophone. It doesn't usually hurt, and my back always feels heavenly after stretching. Does anybody else have that too?