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Well, Happy New Year! 
 Last year ended very well for me and I am really looking forward to the continuing saga that is my fitness journey. 
 I point people to my previous challenge Powering on to Curacao continues! This will have updates on the previous challenge. 
 I had a large list of things I wanted to include in this years goals but I have started really looking at it and I am actually going to keep it compact. 
 Originally I was going to have learning the Banjo, Dutch and a bunch of other things in here. 
 Well, I am hoping to do these things but to be honest, I don't want to drag myself down with things I do not Have to do. If I can do them, I will but I am planning on making this a year of fitness. 
 I read already so getting in more reading would actually be counter productive. I don't watch a lot of television/Netflix any longer so that habit is gone. No, this year I am going to put out my goals and go for it. 
 Fitness! 
 1st Overall goal for the year is to increase my fitness to a level that will allow me to run. I can sorta jog now, and if forced I can sprint but I pay a price for it. I have been noticing that when I play basketball I can actually jog p and down the court without thinking I am going to snap a knee. So, I hope to continue this trend. How ever am I going to do this you ask, well here you go. 1. I am going to begin a couch to 5k program beginning Jan 1st ( already did it as of this writing). I am planning to do it at my pace, however. If it takes me 6 months that is fine. 2. I am going to continue playing basketball. This will help with general agility and well you run in that game. 
 2nd overall fitness goal is to become the monster I used to be, or at least the larval stage of said monster. In a previous life (circa 1999) I was in excellent condition and could do any body weight moves I wanted, I could run 5 miles, do 200 pushups, climb ropes , etc. I was also in the gym lifting weights. I am going to continue the gym work. My goals are as follows for the gym. 1st Bench press over 300 pounds( ~140 kg) by the end of 2018. Ultimate goal is to bench my previous personal best 375 lbs (170 kg) by end of 2018. While the latter goal is attainable having an increase of 150 lbs on bench press is a tall order. Going up another 55 pounds is doable for sure. This will be accomplished with my general gym schedule which will be later in this post. 2nd Squats. I used to love squats. I have however let myself get to the point I cannot do a squat. I have been working on this and it is getting better. I have a goal by the end of 2018 I will be performing full back squats. I am not putting a weight on it, just to do the movement. I am currently doing leg press and other exercises that mimic the squat, so hopefully I will be able to do reasonable numbers once I can actually do squats. 3rd Complete an OCR. I was hoping to go to RRDW in May but with my wife coming in August I am having to reprioritize. This said, there are several opportunities to fly to Europe for a race, and starting next November here in UAE the OCR schedule fills up here. So I will be doing one of them. I am going to post on here as soon as I sign up for my first, goal is to be signed up by February 14, 2018. Because I love myself! Now this is where the couch to 5k comes in as well as the other exercises I plan to implement in the gym. 4th Swimming. I am going to be swimming this year. I went diving for the first time in 12 years on my holiday and I snorkeled for hours on end. I really like swimming and water sports. I have access to a pool, and I am going to take it. The goal is to log my total number of meters per session. Goal is to swim 2 times per week and average 1500 meters per session. So goal is 75,000 m (75 km) to be swum this year. This will only include swims in marked water i.e. swimming pool. If I go to the beach doesn't count if they do not have a fixed course. Scuba will not count, Im planing to do both on the side. This will be accomplished by going to the new gym on the base I work at, which has an olympic size pool, and I have confirmed the hours they are open. This will be easier as they are now assembling all the new weight lifting equipment in the new gym as well. It will be one stop shop. I will lift, then swim. 
 5th food. I am currently doing a whole30. My plan is to try and keep this going for the whole year. I say try only because I have not done a whole 30 yet and I may be able to safely incorporate some of the non whale 30 compliant foods into my routine. If I can tolerate cheese and milk it would not be a bad addition in small quantities for example. My purpose is to truly kill the cravings I had. I didn't have many and the Steak and Eggs diet I did helped a great deal. I just think I can do this better. I am starting to see changes in my body. The scale isn't moving but the popping out of veins in y arms, the reappearance of my color bones , etc., all point to Im doing something right. My goal is to have a sub 40 inch waist by December 31, 2018. I am ashamed to say it, but I am a 50 inch waist right now. I have a 54 inch chest, so I was not quite a pear, but it is a far cry from 1999 when I measured 54 in the chest, and 35 in the waist. I am not putting a weight down as I don't care. I really don't. If I weighed my current 325 lb ( 150 kg) but it was all in the right places with the right composition I would be happy with that. I just know that there are many inches in my middle that do not need to be there. All is not gloom, however. When I started this journey in September 2017, I had a 54 inch waist. So I did lose 4 inches. 
 The Temple Schedule: I am still going to plan for a 5 day a week lift schedule. However based on life over the last 4 months of last year I know that 5 days is a rarity. So I am going to commit to lifting 3 days a week minimum. I know from my charts from last year, 85% of the time I can complete 4 lift days a week. So my goal for 2018 is to have completed 180 weight lifting days by the end of the year. Current schedule is as follows: Sunday, Monday,Tuesday will beare lift days. Wednesday is my long work day and currently sports day ( Basketball volleyball and Football) with the Military so it all be a rest day. Thursday is a lift day and Friday is a lift day. Saturday is a rest day. I will not lift more than 3 days in a row. I work out wit enough intensity that when I did 6 in a row last fall, I broke myself for several weeks and actually revised gains I had previously achieved. 
 Outside the Temple: 
 I am going to finish my lifts by going to the pool. Currently I have Sunday, Monday and Tuesday available for swimming and possibly Wednesday. After that the pool hours become ridiculous. 1 hour each day from Thursday through Saturday, and that is if someone shows up to unlock the building. 
 I am going to go for a walk/hike twice a week. I will incorporate running as I go. This will include my plans that on weekends I will be making day trips around the country to do activities. I may hike in the mountains, or I may hike all over Dubai Mall and fountain looking at cool stuff. Either way I am not sitting on can. I plan to do road trips, I do love road trips, and I am going to plan into them, hikes along the way. 
 That is it. Simple yeah? 
 I am going to do my best to be the best me, I can over the next year. I owe that to myself and to those that love me. I have tasted again the joys of being active and I am addicted. I need to get functional again to truly enjoy the gifts I have. I may add in side challenges and special things during the year, but these are the pillars on which the other things will be placed. 
 
 As Always ODIN! 
 Thanks for your support, I really appreciate all of your help and encouragement.