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I've been taking whey protein supplements for a few years now, but recently came across this one article listing 10 reasons why you shouldn't take protein supplements. Basically the author was saying that instead of supplementing wth protein supplements, we should supplement with whole foods for a variety of reasons. I thought it was interesting, so I did a little research and then I came across another article that was basically a rebuttal of this. Anyways, I was just wondering if there was any merit to either article. I always thought that one of the reasons we take protein supplements instead of eating just more normal food is because the additional protein required for lifters is not paralleled with additional requirements for fat/carbs? Anti protein article Anti anti protein article

Since I'm focusing more inwards this challenge, I decided to hop on over to my Druid buddies! Hi!!!!! This Heathen Mama has a Master Plan to start eating like a Viking! This challenge will be 100% diet based for me. After much research I keep coming back to the Nordic/Viking Diet. The paleo diet that I have tried many times before is far too restrictive for me and my carb-loving self. I do well for about a week and then end up going carb crazy and derailing my progress. So instead I found that the Viking Diet allows me limited carbs in the form of root veggies (potatoes, etc) and whole grains. I'm going to stick to this plan for the length of this challenge and see what kind of differences I see and feel. My goal is to keep it super simple and set myself up for success. If I do well following this, then next challenge I may add some other things. Here are my goals for this go around: 1. CARBS - From Whole Grains (rye, barley, oats, oatmeal), root veggie (potatoes, onion, parsnip, carrot, broccoli, sweet potatoes,etc) and fruits as desserts (focus on mainly berries, apples) 2. WHOLE FOODS ONLY- Focus on real whole foods. Proteins should consist of fish about 3 times a week, chicken and lean meats otherwise. Root veggies and fruits. no fast food, no processed food. no junk food, no sweets (except for occasional treat of dark chocolate 72% or higher). Based on previous trial and error I found that I LOVE stews. Healthy and filling when done right. Going to break out my crockpot about twice a week for easy, filling meals and plenty of leftovers. I love stews, casseroles, pot pies, basically anything that is like "all in one" meals. I hate cooking, so it helps! 3. DRINK HEALTHY - Drink 10 cups water daily, herbal tea and black coffee - no soda or energy drinks. I'm allowed alcohol 2-3 times a week, but stick with low cal low carb beers or wine. 4. FOCUS ON KEEPING PERCENTAGES IN BALANCE- the Nordic diet, based on what I've found, should be about 30% healthy fats, 50% carbs, 20% protein. veggies and fruits should make up 2/3 of my plate, with protein only being 1/3. I'm not going to focus as much on calories for the time being, but focus on eating until comfortable and keep the percentages within that general range. To succeed I'm going to set aside time to cook in advance with larger portions with allow for easy leftovers and work meals already packed up and portioned to go. I'm also a creature of habit, so work to create set meals that I can rely on. Example would be having a set breakfast of a fruit and oatmeal sweetened with cinnamon and a tsp of honey. That way I don't have to worry as much about WHAT I'm gonna eat. I know what I'm gonna eat and know that it follows the Master Plan. *muahahahaha devious laughter ensues!* I'm going to try to be good about taking photos of my foods as well to document and hold myself accountable. Skal!

:smiley_simmons: I have fallen off my wagon a few times in the last two months and it's time to rebuild the wagon and hop on and stay on! With that in mind, I realized that other Scouts are also facing these challenging aspects of life. So, in honor of all the Scouts, I am facing these goals with you. For I am not alone and neither are you! Like QengpuBenal I have lost weight so I know I can continue to do so. My Quest: Get down to 185#. From Noxious Gnome I have how to 1.) Move to get a sweat, every single day That’s right; I plan on moving my body in some fashion for at least 20 minutes, stretching is required, but won't count as the movement. I want a good sweat. And as Missrackl said in her thread, " Don't get injured." a. will be determined by temp, gig, and weather b. Work covers this only if I get my sweat on. Grading: 42 = A; 34 = B; 29 = C; 25 = D; =/<21 = Fail. From Syren 's wisdom I will 2.) Eat the whole foods Whole Foods is my ultimate goal so any movement in that direction is a win. I need to be mindful because… · Cooking can be a chore and eating out is so easy · Read labels - avoid HFCS, Hydro-, artificial flavors, etc… · I have a bad habit of filling up on all of the grains rather than eat my vegetables · I love sweets, and sweets do not do a body good. I am going to use Anathema's point system for this goal and see how it fits me. a. per choice I will either earn a point or lose a point. b. bonus points if food shopping is hard, but I do well. Grading: 42 = A; 34 = B; 29 = C; 25 = D; =/<21 = Fail. DeborahJade has the right idea so I too will 3.) Get good sleep To be able to do any of this, I need to get proper sleep just like Unikarm. So I've set myself the goal of 'LYING in bed by [12:30 on week 1, midnight on week 2, 11:30 on week 3, 11:00 on week 4, 10:30 on week 5 and 6] at least five nights per week. a.) get ready for bed so I'm 'lying' in bed by that time. b.) Do not bring electronics to bed, period! Grading: 30 days = A; 25 = B; 20 = C; 15 = D; =/< = Fail 18ck has the notion that I want to follow so I will 4.) Life Goal: Clear debt from last year I have to manage my business income so that I can pay off several things and still have money for my periodical bills like car insurance. a. pay off car insurance :: approx 225 b. pay down some on my braces :: approx 200 c. save up to pay for Camp NF :: approx 500 d. oh and business taxes:: approx 500 e. pay renter's insurance:: approx 80 Grading: all 4 = A; 3 with some on 4th = B; 3 only = C; 2 and some of the others = D; no complete ones = Fail. 5.) Side Challenge: track with fitbit and MFP Just do it. "All this has to be a priority all the time, not just when it's easy or convenient, " according to suelk thank you Sue. Thank You All.

Third challenge! After last time, I did really well (if I say so myself!) but then fell off track in the gap between challenges arg! So getting back onto it, trying to stick with it despite getting busier and busier towards the end of the year and Christmas! My main goal is still to lose 20kg by around September/October next year. This challenge in particular I am aiming to lose about 4kg Quest 1: Do gym work, aerial silks or PT for 45 mins a day, 4 days a week I am getting good with the consistency now, but my work is picking up so I need to make sure that I plan my workouts well enough that they happen even when things get chaotic. Quest 2: Eat 1350 cal/day for 5 days per week. I was good at this last time and I want to keep that going. I also want to get good whole foods in and back off the sulfites which have started creeping in again Quest 3: get a straddle up and be able to do the seatbelt higher up on the silks. This is going to mean working lots on my core strength, and practicing getting out of the seatbelt without relying on the ground lol! Lifegoal: I have a schedule for my housework, I want to stick to this because when my house and workspace is organised, I am organised and more relaxed. I want to get my hair cut and coloured, because I havent done either of those things since JUNE and it is looking RATS lol, which doesnt help me feel professional, confident or pretty. I'd also like to get my eyebrows done because i havent done that in god knows how many months. I also need to get my tattoo touched up! Lots of work to be done!! But it's going to be awesome

Hey guys! So after bailing on the last two weeks of the previous challenge, I'm back! I'm glad to be here with the Rangers again, I just loved the mini missions last challenge Motivation/Life Quest: I've had a really rough time the past 4-ish months due to a death in the family. I've been letting myself go because of it, making excuses to not do anything, and basically just moping around. I know this is normal, but I need to stop throwing myself a pity party with a pizza every time I get upset. I need to take care of myself. This is a big portion of my "life" side mission, and part of my overall life quest. I need to value my health and myself in general more, I want to take pride in my life and how I eat and live. I shouldn't want to have a clean apartment so I'm not embarassed when I have guests. I should want a clean apartment because when I wake up to a clean apartment I'm happier. Why should I not value this happiness and make myself happier each morning with just a few quick cleaning sessions? My other main mission has been the same for a while... I want to get my back walkover back! I used to be able to do it... now I can't. I'm working on it. I got a wall handstand last challenge, and a backbend the challenge before that.... this challenge I'll be building more specifically towards a backwalkover progression. Main Missions: Be strong! I will strength train twice a week. One of these will be the ABWW, the other will be some heavy lifting. Same dumbbell olympic lifts I started working on last challenge. I can get a max of 3 +STR, and it is based on percentage of workouts completed gets me that percentage of 3 possible points, rounded to the nearest 0.25 points. Be Relaxed! Two yoga or cardio sessions a week. Both of these things help me relax in different ways, depending on my stress level (running helps relieve angry stress, yoga helps relieve sad stress). So I'll pick depending on my mood and get two sessions of one or the other done twice a week. Points are a possible +3 STA, same as above, based on percentage of level of effort. Be Bendy! Back walkover progression exercises 3 times a week. These can be quick 5 minute things tacked onto the end of another work out, or their own thing before I go to bed or when I wake up. I'll be doing rocking back bends and walking up the wall while in a backbend and eventually kicking over. 3 points of DEX. Same award system as above. Diet Side Mission: Eat Cleanly Eat whole food based, gluten free & cheese free. Cheese makes my tummy go ow. And I've discovered gluten makes me feel really bloated and lethargic by cutting it out for the most part last challenge. So I'm moving forward with this and going to try to go all the way these next weeks. Possible +3 CON. Same percentage points based on number of meals following these restrictions. Lift Side Mission: Take Pride in Myself & My Surroundings This ones kind of complicated. Basically, I want to do each of the following each weekday day to increase my pride, and happiness in myself and my surroundings: --Fly Lady Daily Mission --Scoop Cat Litter --Swish & Swipe Bathroom --Prep Breakfast & Lunch for the next day --Brush AND FLOSS my teeth --Wash my face before I go to bed --Moisturize before I go to bed. My face & my body. And here's my spreadsheet for the challenge with points broken up and pre-calculated as I fill it in over the challenge: *Notes* Since I'm starting this late, and my whole life if kind of a wreck (I need to go massively grocery shopping, set up a meal plan and get the mounds of clothes and shopping bags off my floor), I am using the remainder of this first week to get to base zero. Next week I will start really doing everything I listed above, and I will extend the challenge into the extra week between challenges. I will post every day here this week to say how I worked towards getting back into the swing of things though, so I won't just be slacking off this week! Anyway, it feels great to be back. And I can't wait to go catch up on everyones threads

I'm really excited to be joining Rangers this challenge! Woot! I'm coming over from Adventurer's for my third challenge because I think my goals are pretty ranger-like. I want to be flexible and do backwalkovers ninja style, but I also want to kickbox and be strong like bull and be able to squat heavy. I also enjoy the occasional run. So, here I am! First off, Happy New Year everyone!!! I'm really looking forward to kicking some major butt his year as only a nerd can. Anyway, last challenge I began my battle for recovering my backwalkover. For those of you who don't know, the first half of this is a back walkover: Last challenge I just foucsed on getting stronger and more flexy. I succeeded, and can now do a backbend without fear of falling on my head! This challenge I want to work on handstands. They use pretty much the same muscles as a backbend kickover (which will be my next phase to backwalkover awesomeness) and will get me used to the feeling of being inverted again. In order to do this I'll be doing the 28 day handstand challenge, and I'll also continue to work on my cardio, strength and flexiness... Cleaning has also been a big part of my past two challenges and I am going to continue with that since I am really happy with the results I am seeing so far in my sparkly apartment. I started using FlyLady last challenge and am going to keep with it for this one. I whittled down what parts of FlyLady I'm going to focus on a little more than last challenge, because even my already mini-Fly-Lady-ing was a bit much. I gained a bunch of weight over the holidays, despite my holiday mini challenge to not over eat and to exercise a bit. I guess it could have been worse, but I am seriously teetering on the edge of 200 lbs (199.6!). I've never actually gotten on the scale and seen 200, and I feel like as much as I don't care about weight and only care about how I feel that would make me feel completely awful. So here's to the new year and getting far far away from 200! Anyway, on to the specifics of my challenge! MAIN MISSIONS: GET STRONGER I have aspriations to eventually start doing some real weight lifting (probably next challenge!) so I want to build up my strength even more with body weight work outs before moving up to the next level in the strength training world. I'm also having trouble finding a gym near me that doesn't charge $8 billion a month due to the fact that it offers yoga/pilates/kickboxing/whatever classes included in its fee. I just want to lift things up and put them down! Hopefully by the next challenge I'll have some success with that. So, I am going to continue with my ABWW routine, modified with assisted pull ups and chin ups, and replacing the one legged squats with sumo squats. This time around I'm only going to do it twice a week, but with 3 circuits per work out. That's the same amount of circuits just crammed into less days. I'm hoping to be more motivated to actually work on the other physical aspects of my challenge with the extra free day every week, since they definitely fizzled last challenge. And here is my motivation, the ever adorable Samantha Wright: What a bad ass. This mission can get me a potential +3 STR. It is based on purely percentage completed, but I rounded off boundaries for points earned so I don't end up with crazy decimals like I did last challenge. 90-100% = 3 points 75-89% = 2 points 50-74% = 1 point 25-49% = 0.5 points 0-24% = 0 points GET MOVING I will do yoga or cardio 2x a week, depending on my mood and schedule. That can be two cardios in one week, two yogas, one of each, whatever. Just get moving! This mission can earn me a possible +3 STA. Same percentage system as above. GET INVERTED 28 day handstand challenge. It will happen. I can do this for the last 28 days straight, or spread it out as the challenge goes on (obviously what I'm going to try to do). But by the end of the challenge, I should have 28 days on handstand practice behind me! Grading will be in 2 parts. First, just a pure percentage of if I completed all 28 days. This is a potential +2 DEX. 90-100% = 2 points 75-89% = 1.5 points 50-74% = 1 point 25-49% = 0.5 points 0-24% = 0 points The second part is if I can successfully do a "good" wall handstand by the end of this challenge. This is purely pass/fail. If I can do it, I get +1 CHA. If not, I don't. Hey, if a cat can do it I feel like I should be able to, too. SIDE QUESTS: Diet Side Quest: Get 11,200 healthy calories a week. This is an average on 1,600 calories a day. I am going to grade myself by week because I don't mind if I eat a little over one day and fast a bit the next, as long as I am on target for the week I'll pass. For now, healthy = no obvious cheese and no obvious bread. I am not going read ingredients, if a jarred tomato sauce happens to contain parmesan or something that doesn't count. I will eventually take it that far, but not yet. "Obvious" bread means something clearly bread-like as a part of my meal. This includes bagels, pasta, pizza dough, etc. Again, not checking labels just yet. I will allow myself 3 cheat meals a week to include one of both of these items (read: PIZZA), but only if this does not put me over my weekly calorie goal. So the grading for this is in two parts, for a total of a possible +3 CON.The first part is worth +2 CON, and is based on the number of the weeks I hit my calorie goal. 6 weeks met = 2 points 5 weeks met = 1.5 points 4 weeks met = 1 point 3 weeks met = 0.5 points 2 weeks met = 0.25 points 1 or 0 weeks met = 0 points The second half of this grade is based on the healthiness of my meals and is worth +1 CON. Basically, if I limit myself to my 3 cheat meals a week, and therfore have 108 or more healthy meals under my belt at the end of the challenge, I will get the whole point. The amount of points earned is based on the number of healthy meals I eat during the challenge, the maximum being 126 (which is 3 meals x 7 days x 6 weeks). 108-126 healthy meals = 1 point 87-107 healthy meals = 0.75 points 65-86 healthy meals = 0.5 points 42-64 healthy meals = 0.25 points 0-41 healthy meals = 0 points Hopefully the healthies plus the staying more on track with calories will make me feel fresh and not so bloated and awful, as I have been the past few weeks. By the end of the challenge me and my tummy will feel fabulous. Life Side Quest: Fly Lady it up! I will do the weekly home blessing, and the week's zone detail cleaning each week for +1 WIS, based on the same point to percentages as the above missions. I will do at least one load of laundry each week and fold/put it away within 24 hours of getting it out of the drier for +1 CHA, and do the week day daily missions and swish & swipe each weekday for a total of +1 WIS. Here's my grading spreadsheet that I will update throughout the challenge, which will automatically calcuate my grades at the end: And that's that. I'm out.

So it turns out there are a lot of people starting their Whole30 this challenge. I am personally on day 13 (today) and will be on day 15 on the first day of the challenge. So I thought I'd start a support group for those just starting out and those who are somewhere else in their Whole30. We can share war stories and offer support. And even offer recipes and tricks and tips on where we've gotten so far. Don't forget to sign up on the spreadsheet, here. Members: Blaidd Devyn Jonesy PaleoIsh WritingWeaver AgentKatia Tonic