Idle wishes won't get me anywhere. It's time to take action!

[Rhyme]

<RP>

 

Crisp morning air and a feeling of drowsy cheer permeated the village market. As a small midpoint town, the early hours were perhaps some of the most active; travelers awoke with the sun to restock their supplies before they headed out on the day's journey.

Any groggy eyes that morning were awoken with a sudden shock as a man flew over a merchant's stall, crashed to the ground, and rolled into a frenzied sprint. The source of his panic was genuine - for a figure shrouded in dark robes was hot in pursuit.

The few travelers crowding the stalls murmured warily, giving them a wide berth to settle their differences alone. While a handful of curious eyes turned to watch the chase, no one would help the sorry victim. Few are foolish enough to risk the grudge of an assassin.

The victim was proving himself a difficult target, however. He hopped easily onto a short bench and leaped to grab a ledge. Within moments, he was out of sight onto the roof. The hunter was hot on his heels, up onto the bench and then - with a startled yelp - his foot caught and he toppled painfully to the ground.

Silence.

With a tentative pause, a head peeked over shyly from the roof. Upon seeing the hunter clutching his wrist, the victim swung over the ledge and dropped lightly to the ground, trotting over and, surprisingly, offering his hand.

The hunter gave the victim's hand a calculated look, then took hold and was pulled to his feet. In return, he reached out and delivered a light whack on the shoulder - then spun and took off in the opposite direction. His friend let out an indignant cry and raced after him, their game of tag taken up once more.

Those watching gave an uneasy laugh of relief, and the small traffic jam the commotion had caused slowly dissipated to its regular trickle. The duo's unusually lithe movements still attracted the interest of a few shoppers, the largest and most ungainly of which was watching them with utmost scrutiny.

'Someday,' the bulky figure mused, eyes following their graceful path out of sight, 'Someday, that's gonna be me.'

</RP>

Hey there, everybody! I'm Rhyme, and I'm pretty stoked to finally be joining the community. It's still kinda weird to think that I, me, am on an actual fitness website... had you told me a year ago that I'd start exercising of my own free will, I'd have had you institutionalized!

You see, I have a mental list of things I can't do, and somewhere between "Command a space shuttle" and "Construct a fully-functional Gravity Gun" used to lay a little entry entitled, "Weight loss". I'd never attempted it because - obviously - it was on my list of things I can't do! It was a simple fact of life that I couldn't lose weight.

With that mindset, you can imagine my intrigue when I heard about Keto a couple months back. It sounded like a minimal effort quick fix - a diet with tasty foods that shredded fat without a lick of exercise. Perfect! I began on August 20th and lost 42 lbs in just over three months.

Success! I was totally content with my progress... that is, until lurking around on NF brought me to a certain article. Showcasing an enthralling display of physical badassery, the article outlined how to start an activity I always wanted to -- but clearly never could -- get into. There it sat on my list of things I can't do: "Parkour".

The same list where "Weight loss" sat only three months prior.

So, my fellow rebels! Now I'm on a mission. I'm gonna get "Parkour" kicked off that list so I can put it over with "Weight loss" where it belongs. Now, I'm not daft, and I know I'm nowhere near the fitness level to even begin training. Three months ago, that would have been plenty reason to shrug off the idea.

...But seeing as weight loss is a lot easier than I was making it out to be, what if I changed my mindset about fitness, too?

So! As of December 2nd, like with Keto, I hopped right in! I've switched to a Ketogenic Paleo and began NF's beginner bodyweight training. The first time, I only completed one circuit before I felt terribly nauseous - I could hardly waddle for the next two days. Four short weeks later, I've graduated to 3 circuits with unassisted squats and incline push-ups. I'm very surprised by my body's improvements and look forward to seeing what else it can impress me with. I've a long way to go, but you bet I'm gonna get there!

Stats:

Gender: Female
Height: 5'8"
Age: 18
Starting weight: 226
Current weight: 179
Goal weight: NOPE. Kash vaults and cat leaps!

Long-term plan of attack:

Diet:

Currently: Ketogenic paleo-esque. I'm already pretty solid, I log my foods into MyFitnessPal and haven't exceeded 55g carbs since I started. The cheatiest foods I eat are fruits, 70%-90% chocolate, and occasionally glazed nuts or Redi-Whip. I do eat non-paleo things such as dairy, peas, and peanuts, as well as some processed stuff like ranch dressing and Miracle Whip.

Goal: When I'm happy with my fat loss, I intend to loosen up and allow myself two days of the week to eat whatever I want. I'll switch from a calorie deficit to a surplus so I can work on building muscle.

In the meantime: I'm not sure if I want to straighten up the diet I'm already on (Miracle Whip really helps me force down the tuna!), but I know I wouldn't shrivel and die if I dropped the ranch or something. We'll see where I'm at during future challenges down the road.

Exercise:

Currently: NF Beginner bodyweight circuit 2-3 times a week + walking 3 miles "when I feel like it". I do assisted lunges and 5-step incline push-ups, as well as messing with a pull-up bar.

Goal: Ability to easily preform the exercises in Dakao's Definitive Guide to Parkour; things such as pull-ups, plypometric push-ups, and box jumps. I'll switch from the bodyweight circuit to his conditioning routine to assist my training once it begins.

In the meantime: Take opportunities to improve where I see fit. Work on nailing proper form and not having to pause during a set. Increase the weight on my dumbbell rows. Use the NF guides on how to do push-ups and pull-ups. Take on a proper walking routine and - gasp! - maybe even incorporate some jogging/sprinting. I've been readily improving where I can in the last month, and I don't think I'll be slowing that down anytime soon!

Alrighty, I think that's about it! If you have any suggestions, feel free to share. I'll be starting tomorrow's challenge in the Adventurer's guild, but I'll try not to get too cozy... with any luck I'll be moving in the next year. See you around the forum!

[Laureleye]

Isn't amazing when suddenly a new thing clicks into place!  Always glad to welcome a new adventurer.  My only suggestion would be - start preparing for the 1/7 challenge.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Welcome aboard! Good job on your progress so far. Laureleye is right, get ready for the next challenge. You are already doing so well with your long term goals, the question now is what can you accomplish in six weeks that will be a step toward your ultimate goals while also being realistically acheivable?