ChrisMatt's definitely not a challenge

[ChrisMatt]

I lied... I am doing a challenge

So here's a little about me. I've been reading some of the stuff on Nerd fitness for a while and it sort of inspired me to start whipping my act together. I just figured out what the whole 6 week challenge is and I love the idea of all this profession and attribute stuff so I decided to give it a shot. I'm male, 5'10", and about 145 pounds and in decent shape but not a ton of strength.

So without further delay, here are my goals...

1) COMPLETE THE RUGGED REGIMEN: I am running a rugged maniac this month and although I am in decent shape, I would like to be able to compete (and show my friends up). +2 STA +2 STR +2 DEX

2) COMPLETE RUGGED MANIAC IN UNDER 35 MIN: This is the time I am going to go for. God help me... +2 STA +1 STR

3) TAKE MY VITAMINS: Pretty self explanatory. Take one Multi-vitamin every day. +2 CON

4) GET A 4.0 FINAL SEMESTER: I just recently got a 2000 on my SAT (This is NERD fitness right?) and I would like a good GPA to complement it. Right now I have around 3.8 but if I do well on all my finals it should get a nice boost. +4 WIS

This challenge is more endurance based, but I'm hoping next 6 week challenge will be more strength based.

Well that's about it. I look foward to seeing all of your challenges too

[ChrisMatt]

By the way could somebody teach me how to use bold, font size, etc.

[ChrisMatt]

It occurred to me that I am unfortunately not fit enough to do some of the workouts described in the rugged regimen, but hey, that's why I'm here right? So I've decided to make a change to some of my goals. And since this is technically day one nothing changed right? So anyway, here are my new challenges:

1) FASTER!

First I have to be able to run faster. Right now I could maybe go 5k without stopping. But that's not good enough!! I want to be able to go 5k definitely without stopping and also move at a decent pace. My goal is 5k in under 29:30

How will I do this? Well, by running obviously... I plan to run three times a week with varying intensities/lengths. +3 STA +2 DEX

Grading will be based on every 30 sec above, subtract one letter grade

2) STRONGER!

I also would like to gain some strength. But because these 6 weeks are endurance based, I will only strength train twice a week.

How will I do this? HEAVY LIFTING BABY!! I will find a program that is designed for only twice a week + 3 STR

Grading will be based on total number of workouts

14 A

13-10 B

9-6 C

5-3 D

2-0 F

3) BETTER!

Same goal as above with Rugged Maniac final time

4) SMARTER!

Again same as life goal above

Well let me know what you think about these new goals

[ChrisMatt]

Off to a halfway decent start...

I was supposed to run yesterday and strength train today, however family obligations yesterday did not allow this. I know, I know, "I didn't have time" isn't going to work here, but the problem was I thought I had more time than I actually did. So I'm just going to have to make up for it on my rest day.

Anyway, today I went sort of med intensity. I ran a mile and a half in about 9:04. (Thats med intensity for me.)

By the way my routine is going to look something like this for the remainder of the challenge:

Monday: Rest Day

Tuesday: Low-Med intensity running

Wednesday: Strength Train (Workout A will be posted tomorrow)

Thursday: Sprints/ Hill runs

Friday: Rest Day

Saturday: Strength Train (Workout B will be posted on Saturday)

Sunday: Endurance Running

Feedback will be greatly appreciated. (No seriously, rip this routine apart)

[ChrisMatt]

Ok, just did first day of strength training today. It looked something like this

Workout A

Squats

135x3x5

Bench

115x3x5

Dumbell Row

35x3x10

Sit-Ups w/ 10lb weight

3x15

Dumbell Curls

20x3x8

Again feel free to give me feedback

[lilbichy]

Are you still doing the rugged maniac this month?  i did one last month, super fun!  I made my kids go with me (who are super lazy) and they both completed it.  Granted it took us over an hour!  but hey, its that we finished that counts!

Awesome goals for working out!  do you mostly train in gym?

[cme25]

Hey, have you looked into Lean Gains at all for strength training ideas? I did the reverse pyramid training for about 8 weeks and gained some wicked strength. It was only 3 days a week, but you could easily make it 2 days a week and just do squats and presses one day, deadlifts and pullups the other day. Make sure you space them out.

RE: formatting- I have a toolbar available when I type, but you could always use Ctrl+B for bold, Ctrl+U for underline, etc.

[ChrisMatt]

Hello all. Yes I am doing the rugged maniac this at the end of the month with a couple of my buddys. I've heard great things about it!! I also workout in my garage, I have a bench, squat rack, pull-up bar, dumbells, barbell, a lot of weight, etc. So pretty much anything I need.

Also, what is lean gains? I looked it up and it was mostly stuff about intermittent fasting. Maybe that's it but is it possible you could send a link?

[ChrisMatt]

Great end to a great week. Saturday I strength trained. It went something (or exactly) like this:

Deadlift

155x1x5

OH Press

85x3x5

Pull-up

10/7/6

Dips

6/6/5

(I don't know why these are so much harder than pull-ups for me)

Calf raises

75x2x20

Today I also went on my first three mile run. I suprised myself with my final time. 25:55!! It appears I underestimated myself. So I absolutely destroyed my goal, so will I accept that and be done with this challenge? Hell no. THIS IS NERD FITNESS!! Instead my new goal is 24:00. Same grading rules apply.

As always, questions, comments, and concerns are always appreciated.

[ChrisMatt]

Starting off the week positively.

Yesterday, helped my grandma open up her pool. When we were finsished I did a few laps but it was mostly just active recovery.

If you have read my routine, today is supposed to be med-intensity cardio day, however I decided to change it to conditioning/metcon/alternate form of cardio day. So I did a tabata with burpees today. To put it plainly, it was top ten worst four minutes of my life.

[ChrisMatt]

Alright continuing to go strong...

Strength trained yesterday, made some improvement to my lifts

Squat

145x3x5

Bench

120x3x5

Dumbell Rows

40x3x8

Sit ups w/ 20 lb

2x15

Also sprinted today.

6x50m at 75%. 5x50m sprinting. 10 second rest in between sets. One minute rest in between rounds.

I wasn't really too beat afterwards, so I guess I was doing something wrong. I'm going to up the distance/intensity/incline next time.

Also rest/active recovery tomorrow. Probably going to go for a walk, might even go swimming. Who knows? I'll be updating again Saturday.

[Ems]

Hey ChrisMatt!

 

Congrats on smashing your running goal, I love it when we realise we are capable of more than we thought. As far as lean gains goes, this link will take you to the NF thread about it, and you can pick the brains of all the amazing people on there Keep up the good work!

[ChrisMatt]

Thanks Ems for the info and the encouragement.

But unfortunately I have some bad news. Playing basketball yesterday I rolled my ankle and sprained it. It is nothing major, I just hobble when I walk and I can't run. I'm hoping it will heal quickly so I can continue my training and participate in the race. I was really down about it yesterday, but when I worked out today I felt much better. Here's how my workout today went.

Deadlift

165x1x5

OH Press

85x3x6

Pull-ups

10/8/6

Dips

3x8

So I can deadlift, but I can barely walk... Go figure. I tested the movement and gradually added more weight without any problems so that was good. My only concern is squatting (which I don't think I'm going to be able to do, but we'll see) and running. This little injury is going to seriously put a dent in my goal time. Hopefully I'll find a way to push through.

It also occurred to me yesterday that I wasn't updating my life goal. Well it is going pretty well. I currently have an A in most of my classes with the one B+. Finals begin on Wednesday so wish me luck.

[ChrisMatt]

Feeling very optimistic about my ankle. Today instead of running, I walked for a solid hour. At first, I limped a little, but as I kept walking it felt better and I was walking normally. I'm glad its healing quickly and wasn't that bad of an injury.

If anyone knows anything about rehabing or has experience with bad ankles, advice would be appreciated.

[ChrisMatt]

Well I have good news and good news.

The good news is I can run again!!! But not only run, I can still run 3 miles with a decent time, for me. I discovered this yesterday when I was testing to see how far I could go without any pain in my ankle kicking in. The pain never did (In my ankle at least) so I decided to keep going and I made it the whole way.

The other good news is I can squat!!! I worked out today and felt no pain. By the way, this was my workout:

Squat

150x3x5

Bench

120x3x6

Dumbell Row

40x3x10

(Insert various ab exercises here)

So it has been a great start to the week, and it looks like I will be able to run in my race in 10 days.

Isn't it great to be young?

[ChrisMatt]

Another end to another great week. Thursday, I did a sprinting exercise. I'm not sure how long my backyard is but it's a fairly decent length. I ran to the end of it and back 6 times at 75%, resting 20 seconds in between, rested 1 minute, then did the same thing only 100% this time. It was much more effective than my last workout.

Also updating my life goal, I just finished my finals. Meh. I was a little disappointed in myself but hopefully my great last semester grades are enough to even it out. I think I still have a chance of getting a 4.0 or even above that, but I have to have done well on the finals not yet graded.

And now onto strength training!

Deadlift

170x1x5

OH Press

90x3x5

Pull-ups

3x10

(Completed a mini goal, now I have to add weight)

Dips

10/10/8

Calf raises

85x2x15

On a side note, went to the beach yesterday. Got sunburnt pretty bad...

If anyone knows any home remedies or treatments, let me know. Thanks

[CMoney&theWeiners]

Looks like you're on the right track. Do you feel like you're getting stronger? I enjoy running but I'm not very good at it. I just push myself and tell myself that it's all worth it in the end game.

[ChrisMatt]

Hello all!

I just realized I was doing this all wrong. I'm going to be basically transferring this thread to the battle logs. I will still update on this thread, but much less often, as I will be posting my workouts in my new battle log. The new link is in my signature.

Looks like you're on the right track. Do you feel like you're getting stronger? I enjoy running but I'm not very good at it. I just push myself and tell myself that it's all worth it in the end game.

Thanks. Yes I definitely feel stronger through each workout. And I do the same thing when running. Only difference is I don't exactly enjoy running. I will continue it throughout the challenge, even after the race just to condition myself. But next 6 week challenge is going to be much more strength based.

[lilbichy]

how long until you do your rugged maniac?  is your ankle still holding up to the running?

[ChrisMatt]

how long until you do your rugged maniac?  is your ankle still holding up to the running?

My rugged maniac is this Saturday in Brooklyn. I'm really excited and looking forward to it, but I'm kind of nervous. I don't know where this fear is coming from, but its very present. Maybe it's because of my very breakable limbs (broke my right wrist four times, my left one two times and sprained both ankles once, not including my most recent injury.) So my plan is don't be an idiot. And speaking of my ankle, it is fully healed. Fortunately it was not that bad, and I'm back after it.

Wish me luck!!

[lilbichy]

Good luck!  the rugged maniac seems harder than it is!  You will do great!  =)

[ChrisMatt]

Owowowowowww!!

This was me coming out of my first crossfit class (session?). Even though today was supposed to be recovery day, I got a trial lesson in a local box so I thought "screw it, why not?" This place though, is all crossfit, minus the crossfit. Like they don't call it a box, or the people running it aren't coaches, but what we did was definitely crossfit. Plus they also have a cafè out back that sells super duper vegan health food. I bought some trail mix post workout and it was delicious. Plus the guy running the place is awesome. He's 62, but looks like he's 40 at mos, its uncannyt. He is a character job though... he walks around barefoot all the time (that's my favorite part) and his words of encouragement are hysterical. I just had to share my first crossfit experience.

If you want to see exactly what we did, I wrote it in my battle log. Alot of static holds. Now I'm going to go cry and not move until my race Saturday.

[ChrisMatt]

WOO!!! High five random stranger!! High five other random stranger!! WOOOOO!!

This was me after completing my first ever Obstacle 5k. The Rugged Maniac was awwwweeeesome. I had an absolute blast. I was covered in mud and shed a little blood, alotta sweat, and even a few tears on that course. The thing that really motivated me was when we were going over one of the obstacles, and the guy volunteering said "Hey its the neon guys. Wow you guys are making great time. I'm rooting for you." By the way, my teamates and I were decked out in neon and were wearing eye black, at least in the beginning of the race. The camera guys loved us, hopefully there will be some funny pictures.

As for how well we did, we finished with a final time of 40 minutes. It was a little above my goal, but it turns out we still made great time, as we overlapped a lot of people in the previous wave. So for grading I'm going to give myself a B on this goal.

I would highly recommend it to anybody wanting to sign up for one of these races. We are definitely coming back next year, and we also want to sign up for a Run for Your Life race. Ok, I'm going to eat everything in my house and take a nap. Bye!

[lilbichy]

awesome job!  i dont see how you could give yourself a B for completing it in 40 minutes?  i know people that run 5k alone with longer times.  i think you deserve an A =)

[ChrisMatt]

Hahahahahaha thanks lilbichy! I would give myself an A but that would be the fourth time I've changed something challenge related. So as much as I would like to give myself and A, I can't.