Welcome to the Fourth TDC Fitness Challenge!

The purpose of this challenge is to increase physical fitness - while avoiding injury - over the course of eight weeks. This is a special thread dedicated to support members of the Triple Digits Club, women and men who are (or were) looking to lose 100+ lbs. Our challenge officially starts January 23 and ends March 18, 2004.

Set yourself up for success!
Make a contract ~ commit to making fitness a priority in your life for the next two months. Also consider promising that you’ll check-in with this thread on a regular basis.

Not everyone who starts a challenge, finishes it. I've asked a few people about their decision to drop out; the common denominator is unrealistic expectations. When they couldn't keep up with their goal, it became embarrassing to come back to the thread and report failure.

Know that we are here to support each other 100%. No judgment. This is a safe place to share the triumphs, troubles and everyday trials of making physical fitness a priority.

Goals
Be realistic, make your goals attainable. Challenge yourself, but don’t set yourself up for failure by promising more than you know you can do.

Give some thought to how you’ll prevent injury during your workout.

Some of us will focus on increasing our activity each week, without a final fitness level in mind. However, if you have a set goal you want to reach by the end of this challenge, feel free to post it now, too.

If you like, include your start date weight and/or measurements.

The Alien Abduction Clause
Many of us have broken promises we’ve made to ourselves. Often we expect too much too soon. Sometimes, however, life throws us a curve ball. Be flexible when things happen outside of your control.

Should you find yourself beamed aboard a flying saucer, don’t stress that you didn’t get your workout in. Natural disasters, illness, injury, severe trauma, etc., fall into the same category. Just get back to your activity as soon as things calm down.

Extra Credit
This segment is purely optional, as is participation in the Challenge itself, of course! Extra Credit will focus on strengthening and deepening exercise motivation. At some point down the road, keeping dedicated to fitness might not be easy. The American Council on Exercise (ACE) state that dropout rates for those who do begin an exercise program reach 50% or more by the end of the first six months. I didn’t include that statistic here to discourage us. If we can educate ourselves about the personal issues that effect our decision to exercise, we’ll be prepared to face any obstacle that crosses our path.

Each week I‘ll include a question or two to ponder. Feel free to participate by mulling over the question to yourself, or sharing with the group.

Consider this quote: "We usually overestimate what we think we can accomplish in one year -- but we grossly underestimate what we can accomplish in a decade." -- Anthony Robbins