Ranger Wrap Up Thread

[Hammlin]

HOW YOU DOIN'???

 

Well Rangers it's that time again- time to share your woots!!!! The end of another awesome challenge. As such this is the thread where you post your results! Give yourself a grade, let us know how you did on your goals, and throw the summary in here with a link to your thread. If we can keep this thread mostly to wrap-ups and keep the discussion in the chatter thread that would be awesome. You guys did great and I look forward to reading the summaries here and the new challenges June 9th!!!

 

Helpful Links!!!
Here is the reporting thread for a previous challenge if you would like to see examples.

Check out this post for all challenge info and questions.

Grading Yourself and Awarding Attribute Points

At the end of the challenge, give yourself a grade on how you did achieving your goals. Then, based on how you did, award points. Partial points are allowed.

A - 100% B - 75% C - 50% D - 25% F - 0%

Here is a link for a chart to help with the math.

Remember to talk about your successes!!! This is how we grow, learn, and have the power to move forward!

Next challenge starts July 28th!!!

 

[rita lin]

This challenge went pretty well. Yes it's mostly C's, but I feel 100% better than when I started, so yay! 

 

Challenge

Challenge Run Down

• Get to all my roller derby sessions - (average out of 5 = 3) - C [sTR +1.5, STA +1.5]
  • Injury at the start of the challenge, then a good dose of fear kept me away from most of the Sunday sessions, however weeks 4 and 5 went very well.
• Do 2 off skate workouts a week - 5! - A [sTR +2]
  • For the last four weeks I've been doing Roller Derby Athletics 8 minute method, which is 5 workouts a week, previous to that I did a couple of the other RDA workouts.
• Physio! - 4.5 - B [CON +2]
  • After seeing my physiotherapist, she gave me some exercises to do. Also, after finding the route cause of all of this being that I have Hypermobility Joint Syndrome, I started wearing proper orthotic insoles and my knees have barely troubled me for about a month!
• Read the rules! - 3 - C [WIS +1.5]
  • This last week I read them every day (I still haven't got through the whole WFTDA pdf xD). I'm definitely getting better.

Overall, I feel like a much more confident and fearless derby skater. I feel my skills have improves (I passed level 1, yo!) my knowledge of how the game works has gotten better and my fitness and overall knee health has also improved 

 

Success!!

 

[Tialoredron]

I finally awarded myself the level this time around.  I only accomplished a C level overall, but I am not beating myelf over for only accomplishing portions of my goal.

 

6 Week Challenge Summary:

12/18 Strength Training 66.66% C (STR +2 x .5, DEX +2 x .5)

 

5/6 Subgoal Strength Training/Gym 83.33% B (STR +2 x .75, CHA +1 x .75)

 

10/12 Aerobic Training 83.33% B (CON +1 x .75, STA +2 x .75)

 

0/1 Subgoal 5k 0% F (DEX +1 x 0, STA +1 x 0) [Awaiting 5k run, looking to accomplish during down week]

 

15/18 Posts 83.33% B (CHA +2 x .75)

 

2/2 Budget/Money 100% A (WIS +1 x 1)

 

Overall Grade (5 +7.5+7.5+10)/40x100% = 75% C on base goals

 

Pending Overall Grade (5 +7.5+7.5+0+7.5+10)/60x100% = 62.5% C on base goals+ sub goals [can accomplish 79.16% B if/when Aerobic Subgoal is accomplished, only looking to record time and not requiring speed improvement]

[darkfoxx]

NF Challenge Cycle 11 Grading 

 

 

New Overarching Goal

tl;dr: figure out what kind of big muddy thing I want to do next and commit to it. In the meantime, do little 5ks & such.

 

 

Goal 1: Fitness

tl;dr: Follow HasFit’s  30 Days to Six Pack Abs program + incorporate Spartan Warrior WODs and other stuffs to supplement.

 

A. I did my workouts + WODs and then successfully transitioned on to just doing Spartan WODs. +2 STR +2 STA +3 DEX

 

 

 

Goal 2: Metrics 

tl;dr: 100 grams or under of carbs, 70 grams or over of protein, under 100 grams of fat, around 1500 calories, 60+ ounces of water, 10,000+ steps on weekends. Track using My Fitness Pal, FitBit Aria & FitBit Flex.

 

B. Overall, I did well - mostly A weeks, with a B week and a C day at the end that tanked my week. +2 CHA - 1 point is out of play because of the B. 

 

 

Goal 3: ???

tl;dr: I don’t really have one but I’d like to get some little extras done, be they craft things or consolidation things, or whathaveyou. 

 

I didn't really get anything done here. Big surprise. I'm reducing the points pool by 1 and not awarding anything for this. 

 

 

Life Side Goal

tl:dr: Do the cyclones 5k in June, zombie 5k in July, and find something for August. 

 

I thought I signed up for something in August, but it turns out I did not (I told the hubbs to sign me up, but he did not). So, it looks like I will be doing a 5k in my neighborhood in August and will be getting chased by zombies next weekend. The Cyclones 5k went well. +2 CON

 

 

Diet Side Goal

tl;dr: Mindfulness during my vacation. Mitigation, not perfection. 

 

I did pretty good here while on vacation. I wasn't perfect, but I mitigated where possible. +2 WIS

[TennisGeek]

Overall: B+

 

Stronger: Workouts B-

Scoring:STR 3 for 3 times/week

Result and claim: 12.5 / 18 = 69.4,STR 2+

 

I don't have a set routine but when I walk into the exercise park, I know what I want to do.

How often I can do the BW workout depends on the weather and opportunities.

As I bike commute, I can continue the BW workout at the exercise park 2-3/week.

 

How much I got stronger? I'm not quite sure. I know I can do a few more reps of pulls in general.

I know my BW rows are getting easier. Difficult push ups is not that difficult anymore. 

However do I care about getting stronger? In short, not really.

It helps my tennis for sure. I really need to protect my arms and strengthen my hands.

My serve improved chiefly from getting stronger. In that sense, stronger is better.

I also need more explosive power so pure power is not something I'm looking for.

I will never be in the lifting competition. That's not my goal.

 

 

Faster: Bike Ride A

Scoring: STA 3+, Improving time, 1 point/20 second improvement - from 31:30 seconds.

Improvement of 224 seconds = 10 / 10.

 

Progress:

W0: 31:08, W1: 30:49, W2 29:33, W3 pass due to 5k run, W4 29:14, W5 29:00, W6 28:06.

 

At week 0: http://www.strava.com/activities/150171175 Ave. power: 136W

At week 6: http://www.strava.com/activities/167156257 Ave. power: 167W

 

So, my power output improved about 22% to go 11% faster. Makes sense.

I'm not feeling 100% about bike fitting. It might make riding a little easier.

In any rate, I made a good progress, and very happy with the result.

 

Endurance, particularly in legs is important for tennis. So, this is a good result.

 

 

Leaner: Macros (less than 100g carb, more than 150g protein) B-

Scoring: CON 3

 120g carb = 0.5, 100g carb = 1

 120g protein = 0.5, 150g proten = 1

 every day. 6/7 days for carbs (1 refeed day) and 7/7 days for protein.

Result and claim: 54/78 = 69.2  CON 2+

 

100g carb might have been unrealistic when I exercise a lot.

In 6 weeks, I had a 5k run, 60 miles and 50 miles bike rides, and a tennis tournament.

When I bike ride 16+ miles and play tennis, I must use some carbs for energy and recovery.

 

Right now, I'm kind of confused in terms of food and weight.

My weight has not been changed since this February, stuck at 162. BF% is 17-18%.

When my BF% was lowest (last December), it was sub 16%.

The muscle weight hasn't changed however. It's about 133lbs of lean mass.

 

This, kind of, doesn't make sense to me. I can do more pulls and pushes.

My legs seem thicker. I can bike faster. Yet, BF% doesn't change much.

 

So, though I'm eating pretty well, I am not getting result I want.

It's probably time to shake up my eating.

Either intermittent fasting, or cutting out dairy is in order.

[kwesadilo]

This went OK. I'll be brief, because details can be found in my challenge thread.

 

Goals:

• Get into a routine of intermittent fasting:
  • Nailed it. 100%
• Get down to 15% body fat:
  • In spite of intermittent fasting, almost no change. 0%
• Squat for 30 minutes in one day:
  • Got half-way there but didn't find enough time in the day to practice. 50%
• Plan my financial future:
  • Done. Budget created, emergency fund allocated, investments planned, and aggressive loan payments begun. 100%

[QuirkyDM]

OK, challenge wrap up.

 

Main Quest- Prepare for the BEAST

As my general main quest, I was to get ready for the Spartan Beast this weekend and this was a great success. I'm conditioned, I'm practiced and I ran 2 obstacle course races to get me ready. I am prepared for this.

 

 

Goal 1: Run for the hills!

I feel ready for the hills. The Sprint showed me I could tackle them without much issue and I did 3 hard hill runs for long runs, and usually another 8-10K hill run every week.

I missed one long run this last weekend after doing the BadAss Dash and over 350 burpees on Saturday for the Ranger mini-challenge. Pretty close.

Grade: B

 

Goal 2: PLP

My goal was to get to day 50 and I got to day 49. However, I repeated 2 days because of my breaks for the races, so I actually did 51 days.

Grade: A

 

Goal 3: Mad Skillz

I practiced all my Spartan skills each week except crawling I missed twice. You just get so dirty doing that compared to everything else! 

Grade: A-

 

Life Quest: Take care of the outdoors.

The yard is looking good. The ants ... man, I hate them. I can't tell if they're the same, better or worse! The weeds are definitely under control and the lawn mowing never got too far behind. Our grass is probably in the best shape it's ever been in.

Grade: A

 

Sidequest: The Buck Furpees! Paradox

I discovered the secret of doing 30 burpees a day- get rid of them first thing in the morning. I missed a few days after my races, but I also did over 350 for the Ranger mini-challenge on the weekend, so the burpees didn't really suffer.

Grade: B

 

Ranger Mini Quest:

I got through another one and it forced enough burpees to more than make up for some of the slacking I did in the other goals. I enjoy doing these just because they force me to get out of my box a little bit and add some newness to my routine.

Grade: Completed

 

One final note. Between the daily burpees and PLP, I will say I notice a difference in my body. Whether it's just the amount of exercise I'm doing, or whether it's the program itself, but my upper body is affected. It took until the late 30s of the PLP before anything noticeable happened, but I can see a difference. I will definitely be adding PLP to my routines from this point on and I whole heartedly recommend it to anyone who wants to try it.

[ladylydia]

To sum up.

 

1. Only missed 3 days of running, and greatly built up stamina. A-

2. Muscle endurance and form improved, functional strength increased. A-

3. Some stumbling on sweet consumption, but did eventually decrease and I lost 3 pounds. B+

 

Overall = A- 

 

Pretty good challenge I think.  

[kzacher]

Start/Finish

stats: Male

Height: 6'

Weight: 223/205.1

bf%: 19% 17%

 

Main Quest: increasing strength and lose fat to get to 14% or less body fat

1.       Increase bench press max from 295lbs to 325 (reached 315 on 6/8) 315 to 325lbs(new pr)

2.       Increase back squat max from 365 to 405(reached 385 on 6/8) 385 to 405lbs(new pr)

3.       Increase dead lift max from 315 to 365 (reached 405! On 6/8)(new pr)

4.       Compete in first sanctioned full contact fight {(kickboxing, boxing, MMA-as long as it’s more than just a gym war I’ll be happy) probably take up to a year as I just joined a new gym}

 

 

Given my schedule is going to be insanely crazy and sporadic for this challenge, I’m setting my goals to be more attainable…  also will be doing more body weight stuff in MMA classes

1.       Lift heavy weights 1-2 days a week – [sTR] 8 times = B

2.       Must attend grappling or striking class 2 times a week - [DEX, STA, CON] 17 clases = A

3.       Do hiit training at least 1 day a week - [sTA] 4 times = B

 

Life Quest: try to maintain a more positive outlook

1.       Wake up and write something positive on my marker board - [CHA] C

2.       Spend at least 1 night per week either writing or reading (as it helps “get me awayâ€) [WIS] C

 

Side Quest:

1.         Maintain good eating habits - [CON] had one too many cheat days = B

2.         Allow myself only 1 cheat day per fortnight - [CON] B

3.         Get down to 200 lbs 223-205.1=17.9 = B

 

OVERALL GRADE: B

 

GRADING: same grading scale applies to grappling/striking class

A – lift 12 times in 6 weeks

B – Lift 8 – 11 times

C – Lift 5 – 8 times

D – Lift 3 – 4 times

F – Lift < 3

 

HIIT:

A – 6 times

B – 3 – 5 times

C – 2 – 3 times

F – 1 time

[Xena]

I got a little behind on my challenge after having a cold in week 1. With falling behind a bit, picking up a PVP, and diving into the mini-quest, I ended up with a crazy scavenger hunt of challenge tasks in week 6,  but I finished it...gave myself full credit all around.

 

1. Run 170 miles with a hard run each week. I ended up with 170.3. I didn't quite get all the hard runs, but there were mitigating factors...

 

2. Cross-train 3x a week and complete the yoga journal strong core series of videos. I did this, but it didn't turn out to be an awesome challenge, mainly because the yoga felt pretty forced toward the end.

 

3. 500 pushups. DONE! I did them all as negatives or full pushups (mostly negatives). I got up to a max (so far) of 3 consecutive full pushups.

 

4. Smoothies twice a week. This was an easy change, but it was something new for me, and I liked it.

 

5. Weekly home 'blessing' (housecleaning chores, modified from FlyLady). This was a good goal for me as well.

 

Randomness; I did the whole mini challenge. It was fun...I liked doing some exercise in pairs, I finally tried the "Bring Sally Up" workout, and I think you've all heard about the burpee-palooza.  I did a PVP, where the goal was to do "500 of something" each week.  I also jumped in on some Neila Rey workouts in a sort of informal PVP.

 

I'm thinking about how to streamline my challenge a bit more for next time.

[sozzielou]

Despite being away for 2 weeks of the challenge I have sucessfully leveled up! My challenge summary is posted here

 

Out of my four goals I achieved 2 grade As and 2 grade Cs so I am very happy.

 

Sorry I wasn't around for the last bit of the mini-challenge. I participated in the first 4 mini-challenges but I have not awarded myself the extra stat point because I wasn't around to fight off the evil red beasties.

[Balsquith]

Challenge round-up

  

Goal 1. Get up to the alarm:

I would like to get up to my alarm everyday with snoozing or turning it off. The actual time the alarm goes is not important.

24/42 = >50% = C (A good effort, but a bit all over the place and no progress made towards it becoming a habit again)

 

Goal 2. Daily Exercise

I want to get into a routine of doing some exercise everyday. I want to make this easy in order to try to turn it into a habit. My plan is to do at least a plank everyday.

16/42 = >25% = D (I never got into a habit of doing anything here. Disappointing. On the plus side I can now plank for 2 minutes, but only when I am listening to Blur!)

 

Goal 3. Pullups

I will do a pullups session at least 3 times a week. My current maximum is 7 and I aim to be able to do 10 by the end of the challenge.

14/18 = >75% = B (only 2 slumps in the challenge, the week I didn't have access to a bar and the last week where I sprained my ankle)

 

Life Goal. Courage with languages.

This goal is basically about courage. I want to put myself in a situation to speak German to a stranger at least once a day. It only needs to be one sentence. Saying 'danke' doesn't count.

19/42 = >25% = D (This is without doubt the best D I have ever got. I really pushed myself to do things that I would have otherwise avoided like the plague. I'm very pleased with myself)

 

Overall: Probably around a C, particularly taking into account the great progress made with my courage goal.

[Istrix]

I was a giant loser the last 3 weeks. I'll get some stats, but it's not worth discussing.

[Terra]

I jumped in late, didn't plan it well, glutened myself and lost track of my goals...  No points for me this round!

 

But I learned a few things too:

 

• I must plan things specifically and in a very visual manner.  I will have a workout calendar sitting on my desk for the next challenge!
• Goals towards an event help motivate me.  Coming up are a 5k, 10k and half-marathon and that last one scares me!
• Gluten can show up in the wierdest places (like the ice cream shop!) 

 

I'm starting my planning for the next challenge right now! 

 

One goal - start my running training but I don't want to stop the other workouts, so finding exercise balance is my goal!

 

Cheers ~ Terra

[ShadowLion]

This was a very successful challenge for me on many fronts. I succeeded in almost everything that I graded. I was smart this time and held certain "want to, but not sure I'll have time" goals back as ungraded and it was a good thing I did, as I didn't have time. I am learning what is realistic and what is not.

 

I successfully completed the mini challenge, was active in the forums and was selected Ranger of the Week, which was really cool. I regret that I took on too much with two PVPs and several accountabilibuddy groups. I will be evaluating what I need to do to better keep commitments there for next challenge.

 

FORTY WEEKS to FIRE FIT (Weeks 2 - 7)

Firefighters Train Hard to Work Hard - A, STA - 3, STR - 2

Strength and Endurance Goals met and exceeded, A

I got in all of my workouts (and more, thanks to the mini-challenge)! I did some modifications for the heat once the monsoon season started. I am leaner, stronger and have more endurance.

 

Firefighters Take Good Care of Their Rigs - A, CON-5

Keep the Crud Out of the Tank - I am 100 days soda free as of yesterday! A+

Durability - Achieved 36/42 days.  B, Fluids
 - Achieved 42/42 days. A

Body Composition - Broke through the 190# barrier and reached 188, final BF% 36. Right on target! A

 

Firefighters Always Keep A Reserve of Water in Their Tank; They Top Off Their Tank at Every Opportunity - 2 A's and 1 C-, WIS-1, CHA-1

Rest - Sleep 262 hrs/263 hrs A (on a technicality), Curfew/Bedtime/Lights Out - 28/42, C, Wake up - 32/42, D. Docking myself the WIS-1 here.

Recovery - Cheat Meals 18/18, A, 
Rest Day 8/6, A

Recreation - Daily half hour 40/42, A, Weekly half day 8/7 A+

 

Attitude and Stress Management - A, DEX-.75, CHA-1

Morning and Evening Routines 41/42, A, Outside Time 40/42, A
, Resilience 42/42, A

Tai Chi Form Practice 10/12, B

[Xena]

# Shadowlion...I like your strategy of keeping some lower priority "icing on the cake" goals as ungraded. I did a bit of that too (didn't post them on the forum, but wrote them down for myself). I think it works really well.

[ShadowLion]

# Shadowlion...I like your strategy of keeping some lower priority "icing on the cake" goals as ungraded. I did a bit of that too (didn't post them on the forum, but wrote them down for myself). I think it works really well.

 

It really helped me a lot. Took stress off when things got crazy, but kept those goals freshly in mind when I did have a little time. It also let me test them as options for future challenges without having to wait for a zero week, which is already full!

[Mistr]

Full wrap up here.

 

Summary:

I made great progress in losing weight over the last two challenges after no progress for most of a year. My previous challenges did set the groundwork for making changes in my diet. The big things that helped were:

• Breakfast including substantial protein
• No snacks between breakfast and lunch
• No commercial treats (donuts, store-bought cookies, candy, etc.)
• Very limited white flour and white sugar

I found that eating within two hours before going to bed made it hard for me to sleep. Poor sleep leads to stress and poor eating the next day. My diet is about 80% Paleo. I do better without strict rules on what I can eat.

 

Sleep is an ongoing issue for me. I frequently want to stay up later than I should to get things done or do something fun after doing chores. Only gradual progress on this.

 

Exercise is going fine. No big wins or struggles.

 

Life quest to get projects done is making progress. More would be nice. That will be a goal for next time.

[Raxie]

I didn't actually challenge myself very much this challenge, I kind of just continued on from last challenge to make sure everything I had gained was really a solid habit I had formed.  I succeeded in verifying that, and did really well in the challenge. Final wrap up summary over here. I got a B overall because I'm still struggling a bit with eating.

 

Time to move on to bigger and better things and challenge myself again this time around!