Welcome to the Summer 12 Week Challenge Kickoff Party! Woohoo!! Tomorrow we begin the journey! So far, there are two three four of us accepting the challenge (the Husband, Sana, Kris, & Me). If you would like to join in, please do!

Today, I would like for us to post the specifics of our personal challenges. If you’re blogging along, feel free to post them on your own blog and link back here so I can follow your journey as well. If you’re planning to “comment along”, then enter your information in the comments of this post.

In Tae Kwon Do, we have to memorize the six rules of success. They go something like this…

1. Have a goal.
2. Have a plan.
3. Have a coach.
4. Take continuous action.
5. Review your goal.
6. Renew your plan.

While I was typing that out, I was chanting it in the sing/songy manner that we do in class. Had my hands been free of the keyboard, I would have added in the hand motions as well.

Here are my “specifics”:

I will do Beth Moore’s study of Daniel.

• This study has five days per week of homework with a weekly audio lesson.
• I have wanted to do this study for a few years… so why not now.
• I will post my progress through the study in my challenge related posts.
• Results: More time in God’s Word and growth.

I will follow the 80/10/10 low-fat, raw vegan plan.

• 80% or more of my calories will be carbohydrates.
• 10% or less of my calories will be fat.
• 10% or less of my calories will be protein.
• Raw indicates uncooked fruit, vegetables, nuts & seeds.
• Except in situations outside of my control, I will avoid bottled juices and dehydrated foods.
• Results: I am hoping for weight loss, inches lost, and body fat loss. I would love to get back into a smaller pair of jeans that have been sitting in my closet for about a year now.

I will eat as much as I care for.

• Logging my food is a pain. I did this during my 30 day challenge so I already have a general idea of how much avocado/nuts/seeds I can have and still average less than 10% fat.
• I will eat until I’m full.
• I am not setting a maximum number because exercise will play a role in calorie increases.
•  I am planning to write down what I eat, in case I need to look up the values at a later date. For instance, if I find that I am routinely feeling hungry, I may run the numbers to see if I’m eating enough.
• Results: I am hoping for fewer cravings, fewer mood swings, more energy, quicker recovery, fewer injuries, clearer skin.

I will do my best to adhere to the half-marathon training schedule I came up with prior to the start of the challenge.

• Because I may be slightly paranoid (lol), I will not post my training schedule. Sorry people. I might post it in hindsight, after I’ve completed my next half-marathon, but I don’t feel comfortable listing what days I’ll be running. I do have a training schedule, and it includes running and cross-training activities.
• I will post my exercise in terms of “calories burned”, and not the actual exercise performed. Facebook friends, you guys know where to find my running/cycling workouts 🙂
• Results: I am hoping for pace increases and overall performance increases. I hope to complete my next half-marathon in 02:45:00. In preparation for my Black Belt Test, I will begin working on jumping rope. Currently I can do three (although I was using my daughter’s jump rope that is too short for me). I would like to be up to at least 60 consecutive jumps by the end of the challenge. That means I need to be at 5 by the end of the first week and add five every week after.

I will do some kind of strength training three days per week.

• Building muscle is key to overall health, so I see this as important (if not more so) as cardio.
• My plan is to lift weights M/W/F using the old Body For Life schedule that I have… Upper/Lower/Upper one week and Lower/Upper/Lower the next. I will keep track of my weight increases throughout the challenge to demonstrate fitness improvements.
• Results: I am hoping to see some muscle tone emerge. I would also like to see an increase in strength. In preparation for my Black Belt Test, I am going to begin working on “boy” push-ups. Currently I can do 10-20 girls ones. I would like to be able to do 10 boy push-ups by the end of the 12 weeks. I would also like to be able to hold the plank for 3 minutes.

I will blog about my experiences throughout the challenge to keep me accountable.

• I am going to aim for daily blogging about my challenge journey. I am certain there will be days when that is not possible. I will try to catch up at the next earliest opportunity.
• Results: I hope that by blogging I will hold myself accountable to following through on my plans.

The Challenge begins in the morning! WOOHOO!!! I’ve got lots of fruit all cut up and ready to go.