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Hi all, I miserably failed my last (and very first) NF 6-week challenge and since a new one is starting soon, I though "what the heck" and signed up for this one. Previously, my goals were a bit too ambitious. I over-estimated my abilities greatly and thought I could handle the exercise, diet change AND uni. I was very, very wrong in all three areas. So I'm back. I started a daily battle log about 1 week ago detailing my transition to paleo, and now I want to convert it into a 6-week challenge. As far as I understand, those who have attempted and failed their first challenge proceed to post in the Adventurer's guild for their second challenge. Correct me if I'm wrong and I'll move my thread to the recruits. Main Quest: Lose about 3Kg by end of 6 Week Challenge. (Current weight 60Kg, goal weight 57Kg) Motivation: Goal 1: Eat an as-paleo-as-I-can-afford diet at least 80% of the time, with veggies taking up 50% of every meal. Grades A = 50% veggies & paleo 80%, B = 50% veggies, paleo 50% OR 30% veggies, paleo 80%, C = 30% paleo, 30% veggies, D = 30:20 paleo:veggie, E = 20:30 paleo:veggie, F = anything less Goal 2: Reduce those cheat paleo snacks I love to eat all the time to twice a week (i.e. only 2 paleo treats per week) Grades A = 2/wk, B = 3/wk, C = 4/wk, D = 5/wk, E = 6/wk, F = daily Goal 3: Climb up and down those stairs at work instead of using the elevator when I have time when moving between floors. Only permissible exception is if a superior expects me to follow them into the lifts, or if I'm really time poor and there are 7 flights of stairs to climb. Grades A = 90%, B = 80%, C = 70%, D = 60%, E = 50%, F = <50% This goal will be tracked in a daily tally of each encounter. I may end up just uploading photos of the tallies due to convenience. Life Quest: Make and follow a reasonable study plan for my Mid-Year Finals in June. [insert panicked face here] Grades = same as Goal 3, and tracked in a similar manner. Fun facts about me: I like most things pink, I'm a Taylor Swift Fan (i.e. I have all her albums, but not such a big fan where I stalk her online or know who she's dating and whatnot) and I love cuteness! Hence all my stuffed animals from childhood are still littered around my office and bedroom. My parents recently gave me a ginormous stuffed dog that I affectionately named Spot (to my parent's dismay, lol). I openly admit I'm child-like, in a small body, but with a profession that requires suits most of the time. The question: "shouldn't you be in high school, sweetie?" gets old quick, although I'm happy to know I'm not the shortest at my workplace, so I get to share our clients' love around. I don't know how I'm going to work with my daily battle log and this 6-Week Challenge thread, but we'll see how I go.

Let's get ready! NEW GOALS COMING SOON

Happy Lunar New Year everyone! I did NOT finish last challenge well and because I hate feeling so low and in the dumps I'll start this new challenge with a handicap: I have to catch up for last challenge lost FOOD and hours studying. I'll keep the objectives aligned but simplified and made slightly easier given the likely stress at work of the next 6 weeks: - focus on weight loss: 6 weeks, 6 kilos. Simple. Now STOP EATING SNACKS! - EAT LESS SNACKS. Or at least less sugary snacks. Focus on fruits, egg whites, milk, non sugary drinks (that means no English tea latte). I am 5.25 points behind. - STUDY STUDY STUDY. I can see the exam looming over me. I can see the polysyllabic words laughing at me, the grammar melting in front of my eyes... Unless I can Conquer The World Of Korean Vocabulary and Grammar!!! I shall conquer little by little (kinda like CoC... need... to train... barbarians!!!!). I am 14 hours behind... - SLEEP. Last challenge this is the thing I let go. I comped a lot and then forgot about it... but I need to sleep more. - Also exercise. Same as last challenge since it mixed body weight and cardio well and did not make me crazy. Up the lower body reps to 30 on double days (Mon/Wed) and 20 on singles (Fri). Cardio + dance on Tue/Thur and couch/TV on Sat and Sun To put it SMARTly: - Diet: No carbs during meals (2 exceptions per week), 3 snacks a day, only 1 with carbs. Dairy doesn't count as carbs. Comp: 1.5 for fully no carbs day, +0.5 for each carby meal swapped for a non-carby one. Total max comp per week +4.5. Total +4WIS+2CHA (high risk high points) - Study: 10 hours a week, however broken down, with one-on-one classes and TV counting for half the time. +3WIS - Sleep: That means 11pm no more lights. No matter what. NO MATTER WHAT!!!!!! +4CON - Exercise: just because BOUYAH!!! New start, new rules, new objective. Let's. Do, This!

I was hiding in my cave while the others were enjoying the fire and dancing, laughing. Suddenly, someone dressed all in black comes towards me and hands me an enveloppe. "Wanna join?" says in curved letters the paper contained inside. When I raised my head to look at the man a second time, he was already gone. The paper was all blank except for these two words. Whether or not I wanted to join was moot, since I couldn't join based on these two words alone. Or could I? I needed to solve this mystery. Following an idea, I get closer to the fire. Some people laughed at me, a snort of sort, which gave me goosebumps. I usually stayed away from these people, but for a little while, I needed the fire. I placed the white piece of paper closer to the flame. A woman, beautiful, dressed in an elegant gown, looked at me and harshly starts: "What do you think you're doing?" Her contempt was visible. I shiver inside, but I know I am right. I focused on the task at hand, trying to ignore her as I get the paper closer to the heat, almost getting burnt in the process. After a few seconds, more words appeared on the paper, written in invisible ink. "You have the answer. See you in three months. Signed: The Assasins' Guild". Slowly, I left the fire to go back to my cave. I needed to think. I was one step closer to join the Guild, but still had no concrete steps to follow. The beautiful woman started talking to me again, but I didn't hear her anymore, lost in thoughts. Joining the Assassins. It was all I could think about. The Assassins were an old legend in our community, and no one had really met a one before. Until that day. But if I really wanted to become an Assasin, I only had three months ahead of me. I had to start planning... Period: 13 weeks (double challenge, to align better with work schedule, which is based on 3-month periods) Ultimate goal: Become an Assassin, a well-balanced, self-confident woman, happy about herself and impervious to what others may say. This will translate into: - reaching the weight goal doctors assigned for me (60kg) and on the way lowering my BMI below 25 - be happier about being me, despite the pressure around and the criticisms and be more relaxed about life in general - regarding food, be more confident about eating and less stressed about restricting myself, make nutrition fun, not a chore Method: Leverage learnings from my first 6-week challenge and be more relaxed about it. This is why over the course of the next 13 weeks, I'll have 5 jokers. A joker is a day when there is an unforeseen even, preventing me from reaching the goals, while still maintaining full grades (cannot be used to compensate). Jokers cannot be used more than once a week or on consecutive days. TL:DR - Lose another 10kg by focusing on weight training and healthy nutrition (mostly Paleo and S-diet), be more happy and relaxed Fitness goal (+1 STR, +1 CON, +1 DEX): Continue strength training, but add more cardio, since I missed it so much last challenge. Also make time for more dance practice. Finally, focus on upper body strength training, especially handstands. Goal is to be able to stay 30 seconds in a handstand without a wall. Method: - Monday: 4 body weight training circuits (2 beginners workout, 2 hip program) - Tuesday: dance practice and cardio, then upper body focus - Wednesday: 4 body weight training circuits (2 beginners workout, 2 hip program) - Thursday: dance practice and cardio, then upper body focus - Friday: 2 body weight training circuits (2 beginners workout, 2 hip program) Exercises: Hip program: lunges x10, plank 30 secs, side kick x10 each side, leg raise x10 each side, hip raise x10 each side, squats x20 Upper body focus: 20 pushups at the level where I will be, then 3 attempts on the floor, then handstand practice for 10 minutes Grading: 1 point for each day where I follow the exercise program, 0 if I don't, 0.5 for cardio instead of strength training, 0.25 for additional circuit training (to compensate). 5 points per week for A, 4.5 for B, 4 points for C. TL:DR - M-W-F: Strength training, T-T: cardio and handstand training Diet goal (+2 STA, +2 CHA): I managed to stick to the no carbs diet last challenge, so I will continue. But the weight loss slowed in the second half of the challenge due to heavy snacking. So goal is to continue the no carbs rule but to limit the snacking. Method: Follow the almost-Paleo rule, with no carbs except in fruits and vegetables but allowing dairy fully this time (life without milk is too unhappy for me), but adding the S-diet to limits sweets, snacks and second servings. I will allow snacks in the form of fruits (as much as I want) and nuts (only one pack, I ate so many last challenge...). Protein shakes for the days when I have dance class in the evening will serve as pre-workout and dinner (will switch to casein for slower absorption). Grading: 1 point for each day with no carbs during the day Monday through Friday and only fruits or nuts for snacks, lower depending on the "infraction", on S-days 1 points for no carbs during meals and only 2 snacks with sweets / carbs. Compensation: no snacks at all on normal days or fruity snacks on S-days, for a maximum of 1.5 point per day. Total 6 points per week for A, 5.5 for B and 5 for C. TL:DR - Mostly Paleo with S-diet to prevent snacking Study goal (+3 WIS): I am taking the Topik level 4 in late March, so I need to STUDY hard. I need to focus on vocabulary mostly, but also do mock papers and take lessons to check practice exams and deepen grammar practice. Method: - Monday to Friday 30-minutes of vocabulary study, - 2-hour lessons on Saturday mornings, - 2 hours during the week (Monday morning and lunch Wednesday) - Monday and Wednesday: 90 minutes of study - Sunday: 2h of self study Total: 2h30 of vocabulary, 4h of class and 5h of self study. Goal is to do at least one practice exam every other week Grading: for vocabulary: 1 point for each day where I study vocabulary, 0 if I don't, 0.5 for study shorter than 30 minutes. Compensation at another time during the week but for half the points. 5 points per week for A, 4.5 for B, 4 points for C. For the rest: 1 point per hour of self-study (goal 5) and 1 point per 2 hours of class (goal 2). Compensation and anticipation only yield half the points. Total 7 points per week for A, 6.5 for B and 6 for C. TL:DR - Mix of self-study (practice paper), one-on-one classes and vocabulary to prepare my Korean exam Life balance goal (+1 CON, +2 WIS): I want to be more happy and relaxed. Meditation helped last challenge, but I need more positive reinforcement, especially building self-confidence in the face of critics at work. I also need to sleep more, since I tend to go overboard and sleep less than 5 hours when I am stressed. Also read more (anything). Method: - Go to bed by 11:30pm Sunday through Thursday (Fridays and Saturdays are optional since I can sleep in in the mornings) - Keep a gratitude journal: everyday, write at least one thing I am happy about being me, one accomplishment I should be proud of or something cool I do. I will keep 2 journals, one in the office and one at home so I can never say I forgot. - Read at least one book a month Grading: for going to bed: 1 point for each day where I go to bed before 11:30pm, 0 if I don't. Compensation for doing it another day during the week. 5 points per week for A, 4.5 for B, 4 points for C. For the gratitude journal, 1 point for each day when I do it, 0 if I don't. Compensation two positive thoughts but only half the points. Total 7 points per week for A, 6.5 for B and 6 for C. No grading for the reading, just positive karma and happy time well spent. TL:DR - Bedtime 11:30pm S-T, with Fri and Sat optional, keep a gratitude journal, read This will be a hard path, the path of the Assassins. But I was ready. I had a plan. The next three months would be tough but I would hold on. I would start again when I would fall and dry my tears when I would cry. I would do my best and be proud of myself. And at the end of these three months, I would be proud, wherever I would be, whether I would have been successful or not. I would stand tall and shout to the world that I tried. I took a deep breath, ready to engage in this new challenge, starting a new era of my life. I looked around me and strengthened my resolve. This was starting now.

Hi Everyone! I am JuMun and this is my first challenge! Based on everything I read so far I want to become an assassin, but with kinda ogre nature it is going to be hard... So let's start and keep on track! For my first challenge my Main Quest is to become Fit and Toned with a side of Looking good naked. My goal for this 6WC is to lose weight (6kg - preferable of fat) and gain muscle (3kg - please let me know if that's unrealistic...) all the while being more emotionally distanced and relaxed. My goals are: - Do a strength training routine every weekday morning (+3STR, +2STA) (100%=3+2. 80%=2+1, 60%=1+0, <60%=0) - Eat less than 50g of carbs every day (even on weekends *sigh*) (+5CON) (100%=5, 6/7=4, 5/7=3, 4/7=2, below 4=0) - Meditate every day, starting at 1 minute the first day and increasing by 1 minute each week (thank you Steve for inspiring this goal - I need it very much) (+5WIS) (100%=5, 6/7=4, 5/7=3, 4/7=2, below 4=0) Let me know if you thins this is doable / ridiculous / out of there / too easy! Thank you all for your help Cheers, JuMun