L1 Mini Dungeons (please follow)

[lilmula01]

Let me try...

 

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yes, for sure. It's reasonable because I think I have what it takes to become strong and fit.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? My 3 goals do build towards the main quest in little ways. 

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? All of my goals are realistic... it might take more than 6 weeks but I'm still planning to work at it either way.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? The Publix right down the street has a weighing thing and I'll take pictures every week to show progress.

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? I'm grading my goals in a A,B,C,D,F, fashion everyday and the "reward" is feeling good and looking the part too.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? Work harder the next day. Make up for what you lost by walking, jogging, or running it out.

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? Thanksgiving is the only holiday I'm really worried about. Either way, I'll manage my intake and what I eat as far as calories. I'll still continue to workout though. A holiday isn't an excuse to not workout in my opinion.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? I don't think so. As far as I'm concerned, it seems to me that they benefit from each other.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? I do have time to complete them and if not, I'll make time in the mornings to complete them.

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? I'm trying to do both. I want to make a habit out of working out and I want to focus a lot of energy on my main quest.

[Keldon]

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable?  The goals are based on going to the gym 2-3 times per week.  In order to get an A I have to be willing to sacrifice some free time, but not throw my already busy schedule into disarray from day one.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on?  Yes, all involve getting into the routine of gym life

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? I'm a firm believer in the "it takes 30 days to make a habit"  theory, so six weeks is perfect.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them?  Google calendar - Google manages my life lol

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€?  I have A, B, C, D, and F levels

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured?  I still have free appointments with the trainers if I get hurt to plan an alternate routine, and a lot of medical professionals in my life to talk things out with.  Upper body strains might keep me from weight lifting, but I can modify the BBWW and still do the biking.

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those?  I sat down with my calendar and planned it all out.  I'm more concerned with Nov/Dec than I am with this one.  This is pretty much a grind-through period anyways.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another?  Everything is connected.  Lift, bike, move.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them?  The whole point is to make time.  

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest?  All energy is focused on main quest.  Get in the routine.  Make it a habit.

[DireWolfCurse]

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yes, over a long period of time. It is reasonable.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? All three built toward my main quest. I'm good with the small steps, although it will certainly still be a "challenge." 2 have one thing to focus on, but the 3rd one has smaller things to work on, which gives me something to do throughout the challenge every week.

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? My goals are very realistic. I can make them have smaller steps, which I have already pretty much figured out.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? I use MFP to track everything I eat/drink, and I have a menu planner now. I got a tablet for my birthday, so I'm putting it to good use

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? My smaller goals will most likely need to be fine-tuned as I lose or don't lose. If I don't seem to be losing any weight, then I will need to be stricter with my smaller goals. I will grade them based on how much weight I lose.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? Life always has its ups and downs. I may simply extend the deadline for myself, or depending on what happens, I may have to change my diet more. I will have a plan, if that were to happen, even if one of the goals ends up being I require therapy

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? I will simply make smarter choices around these times. It may require bringing home food and eating at separated times. I already made changes at a Chinese buffet by avoiding rice and filling up on veggies.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? No, they support each other very nicely.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? I have made time already. Life throws monkey wrenches every so often, so I made it a priority to get full support from my SO in the instance that I need to modify my workout time(s). "The answer's always no if you don't ask."

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? Although I am trying to build multiple habits, I'm attempting to do so slowly through small, easy modifications. They are all focused toward the main quest and completely necessary.

 

I am very happy with my journey so far, and it is working. I have to keep my head and realize it takes time, and that I can't do everything all at once. Weight loss is not immediate, as weight gain was not.

[shaar]

This seems like a great checklist to make sure I'm doing the right things!

 

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yup!  I want to get through the holiday season and stick to my exercise and, more importantly, smart eating plan.  Starting now is perfect, as I have a month or two before the holidays show up, and my progress will hopefully help my willpower!

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? I think they are a nice combination of fitness, diet, and mental strength. 

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? Definitely - I specifically sterted small so once this challenge was over, I'd have a good base to keep building further.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? MFP, the mirror, and the measuring tape do not lie!  I'm also definitely utilizing my battle log and challenge thread for accountability.

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? My grading is for a compilation of my efforts over the 6 weeks - A for completing my goal 100%, B for mostly completing, and C for less than half of the goal completed.  I only plan to reward myself if I get all A's (I don't want a "consolation prize") with something small and reasonable.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? If I can't complete something due to injury or illness, I'll just have to take whatever grade I can complete fully and safely.  I'm ok with that - I know the universe can throw curveballs sometimes!

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those?  YUP - I'm actually out of town for a week during this 6WC, so I've made up a mini-interim challenge to keep me focused and make smart choices when I'm away.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? â€‹They all work very well together, I think!

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? I have time, I just need to make it work for me and get down to business!

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? â€‹I think I am simultaneously working on multiple habits that will all assist me in completing my main quest.

Your mini quest: Make sure your goals are definitely SMART.

I think they are!!

 

For completing this mini quest you will receive an additional +1WIS at the end of the 6 weeks.

[puddletheduck]

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yes. I have deliberately started with something relatively small and that I know I can achieve (I achieved it earlier this year and then lost it again). 

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? Yup: sensible food, exercise and veggies will help to get inches off my belly!

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? I don't think I need to scale them down (though I could if I needed to). The idea is to establish a baseline that's realistic so I haven't gone crazy with setting the bar too high.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? Yes. A points system.

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? Again, points system, and my rewards are specifically tied in to the points system.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? I'm already injured but I've managed to alter my programme so I can maintain strength in my legs while my hip heals. If something more disastrous happens, I'll be sensible and adjust my quests accordingly.

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? Yup. I have a three-day pass to drink alcohol with a friend, if I so desire

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? No, they all work well together.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? They're all things I was sort-of doing anyway, so the time commitment is realistic.

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? Multiple habits, but they're all basics so I don't think I'm spreading myself too thin. And they lead towards my main quest.

[Chromaggia]

Hmmmmm..... Not sure

• 
  Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? My overall quest (feel like I'm achieving something, get stronger, get leaner) is intentionally wishywashy at the moment, because my health is so uncertain I don't want to stop trying AGAIN because yet another seemingly easy goal has been moved out of my reach. I dunno if that's a good thing.
• 
  Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? My quests are all specific, each covers a different area and they build on things I can already do.
• 
  Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? My main goals aren't a huge stretch from where I am now, and ones of them builds incrementally to avoid being unrealistic.
• 
  Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? Easily measured with a pedometer or Zombies, Run. I'm using a 3"x4" card in my waller to record the whole 6 weeks in one place so I can keep an eye on my progress.
• 
  How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? I tried to grade my goals when I first set up my profile, but after two hours of me crying and my partner trying to explain the maths we decided it was more productive to leave that til the 3 week mark at least.
• 
  What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? I already have all the modifications for the bodyweight workout noted down as I know I'll have to refer to them A LOT. For the mileage and dancing goals I'll halve them if I get to ill to complete them.
• 
  Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? Only one event, going to a Night Vale live show, fortunately the venue is far enough from the hotel to make up my mileage. Plus the amount of time I'll have to spend on my costume on the day will more than make up my life quest time.
• 
  Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? Nope.
• 
  Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? Yes. I'll just have to cut down the time I spend watching the same 40 episodes of CSI
• 
  Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? Multiple habits but they all feed into the overall quest.

[Alexandrite]

 

Week 1 - Let's Get SMART

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yes, just need to complete the 6WC without missing workouts to build up tone and locate a rock climbing wall in the area to join.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? Everything is helping me develop more muscle and stability towards climbing again.

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? Very realistic, my current fitness level and where I need to be are not too far away from each other.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? Yes, battle log and calendar will keep track of each day.

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? No grades (I hated them even in school) but it is pass/fail as to whether I reach the allotted amount of workouts per week.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? I have given myself space in each week to have a day or two off or to take it easier on certain days. It would be pretty easy for me to modify my week and still fit in the minimum of my goals.

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? Yes, I was very glad this 6WC fell during Sept and Oct, good times to be getting active and fighting against the tendency for hibernation with colder weather! Birthday and anniversary are both during this time, but I have chosen workouts I can do anywhere, anytime.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? All of them complement and balance each other.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? Yes.

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? Main quest focused right now (all physical fitness related), other than the life quest. Will focus on other habits next challenge.

Your mini quest: Make sure your goals are definitely SMART.

 

For completing this mini quest you will receive an additional +1WIS at the end of the 6 weeks.

 

[aquafreash]

Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable?

Yep, I made sure to give myself a nice and simple (yet important) main quest that will be achievable and reasonable for my level of, well, willpower.

 

Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on?

My three quests are all quite relevant and I think that, if anything, by focusing one I am focusing on all of them. Being aware is key.

 

Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them?

Yup! They're quite simple. I'm quite happy with how I've planned them, and hope that I'll be able to transition into making great progress in them by taking these bite-sized steps to success.

 

Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them?

All three of my goals are easy to measure. Two are simple - did I do this thing today; yes or no? However, I want to exercise - I wrote down 'planned' exercise, which means that I can't count the walking that I do on the job as exercise since I will use it as an excuse not to push myself further, and I want to step into exercise that gets the heart racing a bit more, or that at least feels significantly tiresome. I'm starting to wonder if things like very basic horse riding - I go with my friend but all that I do, not being a horse rider myself, is walk - so should that count? I decided on this goal more as a means of being aware of my planned workouts - but it is a bit hard to track and measure it. I'll probably scale mild exercise like that based on how long I do it for and how fatigued/'worked out' I feel afterwards.

 

How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€?

They're all pass/fail, really, on a day-to-day basis, which is good.

 

What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured?

If I become ill or injured I intend to do more milder exercises, but taking my multivitamins and supplements (one of my goals) is something that I should pay even more attention to if ill or injured, tehe.

 

Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those?

Yep! Exercise and multivitamins shouldn't conflict with this, but I have allowed for up to three portions of sweeties or candy (for very bad weeks or special occasions), but I hope and very well intend not to use these three - I aim for one or two a week at max!

 

Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another?

Nope. If anything, they should really compliment each other! In fact, exercising often makes me hungry - but for the right kind of foods, like salads, so perhaps accomplishing one of my goals in a day will make me more likely to accomplish the others on that given day.

 

Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them?

With my work schedule and everything, I have quite a lot of spare time, so I have plenty of time to do it all. I do need to get into a routine of taking my multi-vitamins first thing in the morning though, and perhaps cut down on the steps between me and taking them by putting them in my bag the night before, with a bottle of water.

 

Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest?

I think that my main quest is quite vague, but in a positive way - if I put all of my focus into my three 'habits', then I'll develop a foundation of health and fitness to then work upon in any branch or direction. I want to get more active and create a base health to go with that, which is a step in the right direction, and a realistic goal for me to manage at the moment.

 

 

Yipee! I'm really happy about this mini-quest. It put a lot of things into perspective for me. Yay to us level one rebels!

[Shimitana]

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yes! A handstand should reasonably be achievable with 6 weeks of consistent practice.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? For the most part. All 3 of my quests work on building overall strength/flexiblility. The first two are specific to handstands, while the 3rd is just over all strength.

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? I could scale them down, although I don't think it will be necessary.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? Yes. They can be tracked both by the number of times completed (If I stick to my 3/5 a week schedule) and also by improvement. Increase in flexibility can be literally measured, leg strength can be physically measured, and handstand performance can be asthetically judged.

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? Grades are on an A-F scale. More effort = higher letter grade = more attribute points. All A's equals a special bonus.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured?  Most of my goals are still achievable if ill. I do not currently have a plan for if I become injured, but depending on the severity of the injury the goals would need to be completely altered, most likely to activities that would help promote healing for the injury.

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? I have not, but there is enough flex room built into each weeks schedule that I can miss a few days due to holidays and still come out with an A.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? None of my goals conflict (except maybe the flexibility versus strength argument, but I don't think I'll be working at any sort of level that that is valid).

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? I certainly have the time available in my schedule, it will be a challenge to actually work the goals into that time, but that is just a matter of making a commitment and using all of my time wisely.

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? I am trying to build multiple habits, but they are all just subsets of a bigger one (essentially just different forms of working out, the big habit is to work out, the goals are just how that workout time is distributed).

[Blaidd]

you guys are all gonna rock this challenge soooo hard!!  Nicely done.

[Amdhiel]

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yep, it may take time but if I stick with it and follow through I'll get there.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? Each quest focuses on one thing and they all contribute to my main quest.

Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? It is possible to scale my main goal and depending on how things go I may just do that. Dropping 10-15% body fat will take a bit of effort and may take a few months.

Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? Definitely measurable, I have a spreadsheet that I'm using to track my weight, measurements and do body fat calculations. I'm also tracking whether I complete my quests each day.

How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? Grading is based on the max number of times I want to complete each quest during the challenge. I haven't decided on rewards yet but I've been thinking about it.

What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? I don't have a solid plan but I don't have a hard time frame for completing my end goal. The only real hindrance to my quests would be if I got some sort of traumatic injury. If that happens I can adjust the quests to work around the injury.

Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? No holidays or specials occasions over the next six weeks. If there were I'd be able to continue on since my training is all bodyweight based.

Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? I'm only focusing on a single goal right now. The only quest that may interfere is the being social quest but that's more because I want to spread the love. If needed I will setup limits around interacting on the NF forums >.<.

Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? I do have a schedule! I'm also going to planning each week in advance and posting said plan to my challenge log. I'm finding that putting it out there helps me stick to my plans.

Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? All my energy is focused on my main quest. My challenge quests all contribute to get me to my goal. I'd say that 2 of the quests are working on building habits (exercise and flexibility), the food quest is more about refinement, the life quest is about changing behavior and breaking through a barrier.

[Terinatum]

"behavior and breaking through a barrier."   from Amdhiel's post...

 

Awesome quote... Really powerful.

[vegwitch]

Yay! I always love the mini quests!

1.  Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yes. My goal is weight loss, and it can be achieved.

2.  Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? Yes they build toward the goal of weight loss through diet, workouts and includes stretching to make sure I can prevent any injuries.

3.  Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? They are realistic and small steps to make sure I form the habit of exercising everyday first. 

4.  Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? Will measure and track them in nerdfitness forum.

5.  How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? Thinking of grading both the effort (measured through quests performed) and the weight loss observed. 

6.  What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? Taking precaution to not over-exert myself in first place.  Can alter goals if the need rises.

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? No modifications needed. I have to perform and account for every day.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? No.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? Yes I have the time in my schedule allotted for 1 hour. So I cannot make any excuses there.

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? All three habits (not new) are linked to the main quest.

[Gentle_Mystic]

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable?

My overall quest ("to develop and sustain a balanced approach to my physical fitness and personal well being) is definitely achievable. The sustaining part, I hope, will be lifelong! I'm doing the "development" during this challenge, and will be able to reevaluate and refine my approach as well as specific health and fitness goals from there.

 

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on?

My first quest is about trying to developing a balanced approach to my all-around health and fitness, and all four challenges are facets of my approach. I'm not really familiar with the idea of "sub-quests," though I can certainly see how I could develop a quest with multiple challenges out of each of my current challenges... That would be a lot to keep track of, though, I'm not trying to do that at this point.

 

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them?

I do believe that all my goals are realistic, and scaled down enough to make them so given my schedule. They certainly can be scaled down further, if necessary, and while that may somewhat reduce the physical and emotional results I experience in these first six weeks, I would still be on track to accomplish my quest, which is to create a balanced and sustainable approach to achieving my health/fitness/life goals.

 

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them?

All my goals are framed in terms of activities I need to participate in a certain number of times per week. I am posting updates in my thread, and I am tracking and tallying the activities on my phone. 

 

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€?

The grades for my goals are based on times per week that I do an activity, with an A for achieving my predetermined goal, lower grades depending on how close I come. This quest is more about creating structure and making time to work on my health and fitness goals, so the rewards are based on the effort I put in. 

 

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured?

Bodyweight Workout: My goal is to do this workout 3x a week. Moving workouts from one day to another is a first option. I could also find strength-building activities that would allow me to avoid working the injured area, or lower-impact activities based on my condition. If I am completely unable to do physical activity, I could substitute an equal amount of meditation!  

Cardio: My goal is to do at least 20 min of cardio 3x a week -- anything that gets my heart rate up counts, so I have lots of options depending on my condition. Moving cardio seshes from one day to another would be my first option. If I am unable to do cardio all week, I would substitute an equal amount of meditation and, ultimately, grade on my effort.

Cooking: My goal is to cook two batch meals per week using my CSA veggies. The intentions here are to a) eat healthy/plenty of veg, avoid eating out, and c) use my CSA efficiently. If I am injured or sick and unable to cook, I would still try my best to eat what I can from the CSA, other healthy food at home and otherwise order out but eat smart. I could re-evaluate grades for this period based on my effort.

Yoga: My goal is to practice yoga for at least 15 minutes every day. Depending on my condition, I would need to avoid poses or do variations to protect injured areas or avoid overexerting myself. If I were completely unable to do yoga, I would substitute an equal amount of meditation and, ultimately, grade on my effort.

 

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those?

I plan to be out of town on a couple of weekends, but the "times-weekly" structure enables me to plan around that sort of thing. 

 

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another?

All of my goals involve some form of time investment, so the challenge will be to fit them all in every week and keep them reasonably spread out. I don't think any of them conflict with one another, though.

 

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them?

I believe that I do. I have an intended weekly schedule for the workout, cardio, and yoga, and will need to plan at the outset of each week to plug in two cooking seshes and make other necessary adjustments.

 

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest?

Both. I am trying to build habits of doing regular strength training, cardio, yoga/meditation, and healthy eating, and that is, in essence, my current quest.

[Jolkon]

Week 1 - Let's Get SMART

So you've set up your challenge and people have popped in and said hi, given you some advise on your goals and just generally cheered you on for the start of your challenge. There's so much information to go that sometimes it seems like you're being overwhelmed.  How do I allocate attribute points?  Which guild do I join? What should my workout look like? Can I join an Accountability Squad?
 
You don't need to worry about these things right now.  What you do need to worry is your challenge.  For this first week you should be focusing on your own quests.  Once you're comfortable with them you can move onto other questions. Your mini quest this week will to really really look at your goals and make sure that they're SMART. 
 
S = Specific
M = Measurable
A = Attainable/Achievable
R = Realistic/Reasonable
T = Timeous
 
Here are some questions to put your goals to the test:

• Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable?My main goal is a bit vague, still achievable and reasonable. I will need to make it more measurable
• Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on?All of my quests build towards my main quest, as well I can easily breakdown the quests into 1 week chunks.
  
• Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them?My goals are definitely realistic and can also be scaled down.
  
• Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them?I will be using My Fitness Pal to track calories and protein and Wii keep tally of sleep and workouts week by week.
  
• How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€?My quests are very much a pass/fail format, sleep is measured per week and diet/fitness is pass/fail every day.
  
• What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured?If I become ill or injured I can continue with the sleep and diet goals but may have to cut the exercise until I am well again.
  
• Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those?I haven't accounted for special occasions but I have accounted for my work schedule by making sleep a weekly challenge instead of measuring daily.
  
• Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another?All of my goals seem to mesh together nicely with no conflicts.
  
• Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them?I have not made time within my schedule to accomplish these goals, but I do have enough free time to accomplish them without worrying too much about time.
  
• Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest?All of my quests build healthy habits that will help me accomplish my main quest and all of my future goals.

Your mini quest: Make sure your goals are definitely SMART.
 
For completing this mini quest you will receive an additional +1WIS at the end of the 6 weeks.

[Terinatum]

"Thinking of grading both the effort (measured through quests performed) and the weight loss observed. " by vegwitch.

 

I like the idea of measuring both. The attempt is good to acknowledge And the result of the effort put in is also a great way to know how things are actually going. Nice decision.

[Amdhiel]

"behavior and breaking through a barrier."   from Amdhiel's post...

 

Awesome quote... Really powerful.

 

It's what life is all about, right? When you want to change something you have to identify the behavior or other barrier that is preventing you from that change. Then you have to make a decision about how to overcome and break through.

[Amdhiel]

Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? All of my goals have measurments built in.  Workout 4 times/week.  6 new veggies.  0 junk food.  I've built a SQL database (this is nerd fitness, after all) to track the intakes of veggies and junk food, and I use the Polar Loop to track workouts.

 

Can I say that I just LOVE that you coded a DB to track your progress?!? I was thinking about desiging a dashboard to pretty up my tracking, visulization is always fun.

[Eld]

Posted my answers over on my challenge post.

[LiserFrenche]

Here are some questions to put your goals to the test:

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? My main quest, which gets me ready for a fitness challenge next summer, is achievable but daunting. However, I have lots of support irl and on NF which will help.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? yes they build towards my Main quest.

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? Yes my main goals are realistic, but it will take planning for me to be successful. 

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? I am tracking my workouts and my meals on myfitnesspal.  I report back on NF.

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? I am grading them A-F. Since I am a perfectionist I will need to work on being okay with getting less than an "A" some weeks and not throwing in the towel if life gets in the way and I have a bad week.  For me part of the challenge is completing the challenge no matter what.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? I will be okay with short illnesses and injuries - there is enough flexibility in my schedule. If worse came to worse, I would readjust my goals. If it is a long illness or injury, I will have bigger problems than completing my quests. 

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? Yes, with sufficient planning I have enough flexibility to complete in my quests.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another?  In a way, two of my goals have to do with physical activity, so there is the chance that activity on one day might make me sore or tire me out for the activity on the next day.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? I plan out my workouts at the beginning of the week. For my meals, I plan out my day in the morning.

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest?I am trying to build multiple habits.

Your mini quest: Make sure your goals are definitely SMART.

[CoderGatherer]

HI! I completed this quest. I posted the answers on my challenge thread at http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/54321-codergatherer-getting-my-life-back/. 

[moreyarnplz]

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? - Yes and yes! My goal is to complete 13.1 miles by January 10. As of right now, I've done 8.5 miles and have every confidence that with proper pacing and electrolyte balance, I can hit 10. Even if I don't do 10 miles until the beginning of next month, I'll still have time to gradually add on the mileage.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? - They are each small goals that will be beneficial to my endurance. Besides the obvious of running, getting quality nutrition and hydrating properly are essential to meeting my goal.

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? - They are realistic, and I believe I'm moving forward at a rate that is just right for where I am now.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? - Yes. I use Garmin Connect to keep up with my runs, a calendar to keep up with my meals, and I've purchased a 2 liter water jug that I try to finish each day.

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? - My goals are all 'do something x times per week'. If I meet my goals but fail to finish the half marathon in January, I'll still count this particular challenge as a win, because I will still be better for it at the end.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? - If I am injured and can't run, I'll modify my 'run 3 times per week' challenge as best I can. I'll take up swimming or biking if it's possible to keep my endurance up. If it's worse than that, I'll continue on my other goals and move back my main quest to another race.

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? - Thankfully the only real modification I might need is that because it's football season, we may go to barbecues and the like. I can easily shift my long runs to Saturday instead of Sunday if we're going somewhere, and as long as I eat well during the week, I won't have to worry about being ridiculously cautious. I also made sure to get an insulated water jug so I can carry it with me.

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? - Actually, I believe all of my goals complement each other very well. Drinking more water will make it easier to run longer distances without bonking. Cooking at home will make it easier to take in quality nutrition which will also make running an easier prospect.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? - Cooking at home is tricky since my husband often works late, leaving me to juggle two kids and school work on top of cooking - often at the same time. However, I'm figuring out that if I put my daughter at the table with school work and put my son in his Baby Bjorn, it's a heck of a lot easier.

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? - I'm building multiple habits, but because they go well together, it doesn't seem to be stretching me too thin. All of these goals are important for distance running, so even though I'm making new habits, I'm still focusing a lot of energy on my main quest.

[IrishAlyce23]

Here are some questions to put your goals to the test:

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable? Yes. If I don't make it in 6 weeks, I will make it in 12. It's a journey.

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? Just one thing and yes they all build toward main goal.

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them?Yes. See response #1.

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them? Yes. Fitbit, MFP, and body measurements/clothes.

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? I am grading my goals at the end of each week. I am going to be kind to myself and keep moving forward even if I am not perfect.

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? I will concentrate on what I can control and take care of myself.

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? I plan on drinking with friends at Octoberfest and Halloween. I will eat healthy and exercise....maybe add in some dancing! 

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? No they are synergistic.

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? Yes. 

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? Multiple habits,

[Blaidd]

wooooooo!!  So many awesome challenges.

[Hulk In Nerds Clothing]

I also did the mini-dungeon in my own thread

Challenge 1