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My Happy New Year I’ve been blessed in abundance in 2022, with the end of the year glittering with moments of miracles and love. That doesn’t mean it was easy, or simple, or that there isn’t work left to do. In many ways, this land of abundance is alien, and I’m making my way into 2023 a little star-struck from it all, and with no small amount of culture shock. How to live in this space, amplify it and honor it? How to make sure I don’t squander the gifts with a scarcity mindset, or from anxiety? How can I go forward in love? This is a time of having set down the weapons; the sword stands at rest in its scabbard; the bow has been unstrung. There is no fight and I have no enemies. The Way forward is one of gentleness, a time of tending to my Self and my Spirit as I would tend a newly-laid garden bed, rich and fertile. In the lunar calendar, this is the end of the year, a time when all things should be squared away, buttoned up, and arguments ironed out. For the Celts, this was a time of looking forward as the earth tilts towards the light, culminating in Imbolc, a time to sweep the house and set the fields to right for the coming gifts of Spring. The Christian liturgical calendar brings Epiphany, a time of revelation and gifts, the joy of the end of waiting in the dark, the manifestation of the miracle. These traditions focus on looking at our everyday lives in ways that we can prepare for the coming abundance, making ourselves ready to receive very real blessings. This challenge, the goal is to take stock, see what’s what, and make a plan from there. Will there be a spreadsheet? Possibly, but the numbers are less important than the measurement. Because the universe loves me and wants me to be happy.

Placeholder, because I have a marathon [I did not train enough for] in three days. Goal is to finish my GymnasticBodies Foundation One course (because I've been slacking on my Hollows) while working on those elusive Handstands and some Tumbling (both modules I also purchased). My gym membership just ended and I'm going full-Assassin this challenge. BUILDING THE ASSASSIN BODY Log GB exercises (foundation core and upper body, handstand, and movement) once a week, kettlebells once a week. SKILLS BJJ twice a week, 21-day Dry Fire Practice modules. CHARM I joined the 30-day Art Of Charm challenge, and I have 10 modules to complete in it. LIFESTYLE Slowly working on becoming antifragile, and I'm starting with getting rid of trash around the apartment.

We all have 24 hours in a day. Somehow I manage to spent the majority of it f-ing around on Facebook. Zero Week: Going to try to figure out where all the time goes. Breakdown Monday: 1030 Wake up [WAKE UP TO BREAKFAST--50 minutes] Breakfast to 1120 Schoolwork to 1230 Lunch and video watching to 1430 Gym (and driving) to 1730 Traffic to 1820 School and drive home to 2115 Cook and DDF to 2205 Driving etc, bet at 0000 Tuesday: Wake up at 0500 0600-0700 class GB, school work to 0930 class to 1030 clean, etc to 1200 Take the dogs out, try to sleep to 1730 [OVER 5 HOURS UNACCOUNTED FOR] Schoolwork to 1900 BJJ to 2100 schoolwork, cook, DDF, etc, bed at 0000 Wednesday: 0940 wake up 1240 breakfast [4 HOURS UNACCOUNTED] GB Foundations, presentation, memes to 1600 driving and school to 2100 Thursday: 0500 wake up 0600-0700 class [90 minutes unaccounted] 0830-0900 class 0930-1030 class no idea after until Saturday morning. Eventually I will continue with my previous challenge: weekly task priority list, and CFE programming. In addition I will be working on my gymnastic skills by hitting up GB's Foundation program. 1. Prioritization Same weekly task list in descending importance. It has been working so far. 2. Addition by subtraction Statues are made not by adding, but by subtracting. I will find one thing to take a way per week. 3. Program Minimum GB Skills and CFE Programming. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Week 1 1) Task List: High Priority [x] Grocery [ ] Meal Prep [x] Final Exam (Wednesday) [x] Final Paper (Friday) Moderate Priority [ ] vehicle maintenance [ ] dog park [x] laundry [ ] organize closet Low Priority [ ] writing [ ] Duolingo [ ] organize desk 2) Addition by subtraction: This week will be an attempt to cut out the Ginger Ale (which will probably lead to me drinking more water). I seem to have been averaging 12 cans a week. 3) Program Minimum: GB Foundation [x] Front Lever [x] Side Lever [x] Manna [x] Straddle Planche [x] Hollow Back Press [x] Rope Climb [x] Single Leg Squat Sunday: [x] Rest Day, [ ] 1 hour study, [ ] 1 hour paper Monday: [x] Power Cleans, Pullups, HSPU, Rows, [x] 1 hour study, [ ] 1 hour paper Tuesday: [x] Squats, Dubs & Wall Balls, [ ] 800m, [ ] 1 hour study, [ ] 1 hour paper Wednesday: [x] Power Snatch & Ring Dips, [ ] 1 hour study, [ ] 1 hour paper Thursday: [x] 1-mile repeats, [ ] 1 hour paper Friday: [ ] Bench Press, KBS, [x] Finish paper Saturday: [ ] Run & Pullups, [ ] 200m repeats ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Week 2 1) Task List: High Priority [x] Grocery [ ] Meal Prep [ ] vehicle maintenance [ ] BJJ video (Ryan Hall Deep Half entry) [x] USA Gymnastics modules Low Priority [ ] organize desk [ ] writing [x] laundry [ ] organize closet [ ] dog park [x] Duolingo [ ] grad school application (letters of recommendation, goal statement, CV, writing sample by 15 Jan) [ ] 8weeksout modules 2) Addition by subtraction: Clear email, and unsubscribe from lists. 3) Program Minimum: GB Foundation [x] Front Lever [x] Side Lever [x] Manna [x] Straddle Planche [-] Hollow Back Press [-] Rope Climb [-] Single Leg Squat CFE Sunday: [x] Rest Day Monday: [x] Snatch; HPS, MU, Run Tuesday: [-] Press; Barbara [-] Sprint Ladders Wednesday: [-] Deadlift; Rowing Thursday: [x] 2k repeats Friday: [x] Squat; Power cleans, push press, front squat Saturday: [-] HSPU, SDHP, K2E [x] 100m repeats ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Week 3 1) Task List: High Priority [x] Grocery [x] Meal Prep [x] vehicle maintenance Low Priority [x] FAFSA [x] VA certs [ ] grad school application (letters of recommendation, goal statement, CV, writing sample by 15 Jan) [ ] BJJ video (Ryan Hall Deep Half entry) [ ] organize desk [ ] writing [x] laundry [ ] organize closet [ ] dog park [x] Duolingo [x] 8weeksout module 1 2) Addition by subtraction: Clear open browser tabs on laptop by the end of the week. 3) Program Minimum: GB Foundation [x] Front Lever [x] Side Lever [x] Manna [x] Straddle Planche [x] Hollow Back Press [x] Rope Climb [ ] Single Leg Squat CFE Sunday: [x] Rest day Monday: [x] Clean cycling, [-] Burpees Tuesday: [-] Rest day Wednesday: [-] Push Press & Box Jumps, [x] 30-sec. Repeats Thursday: [-] Thrusters & C2B, [-] Hang Power Clean, Ring Pushups Friday: [-] Bench Press, 400m & OHS Saturday: [x] 60-min Run ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Week 4 1) Task List: High Priority [x] Meal Prep [x] Parking Sticker [ ] grad school application (letters of recommendation, goal statement, CV, writing sample by 15 Jan) [ ] Budget Spreadsheet Low Priority [ ] BJJ video (Ryan Hall Deep Half entry) [ ] organize desk [ ] writing [ ] laundry [ ] organize closet [ ] dog park [x] Duolingo [ ] 8weeksout module 2) Addition by subtraction: Clear open browser tabs on laptop by the end of the week. 17 total on computer. Then proceed to phone. 3) Program Minimum: GB Foundation [x] Front Lever [ ] Side Lever [ ] Manna [x] Straddle Planche [x] Hollow Back Press [x] Rope Climb [ ] Single Leg Squat CFE Sunday: [x] Rest day Monday: [-] Squats, Cindy Tuesday: [x] Dubs, Ring Dips, Power Cleans; [ ] 5-min Intervals Wednesday: [y] Push Jerk, 800m, Muscle-ups, Push Press Thursday: [ ] 800m Friday: [ ] Snatch, Clean Saturday: [ ] 60-min Run

Brief Background 3 Years and two pregnancies can do a lot to breakdown a persons fitness level. So I've gone from being able to do 100 consecutive push ups to barely being able to do 3. I want to come back stronger and fitter than ever. I've currently got about an extra 10 pounds of fat, that I want to be rid of, but I know if I just focus on building strength and stamina, it'll go away without me focusing too much on it. I am currently exclusively breastfeeding, so while I'll be trying to make the best food choices I can, my diet for the most part won't change. Game Plan -To rebuild a solid foundation - I will be doing the Darebee Foundation Program - It's light, quick and hits all those foundational points I'll be focusing on for the next four weeks, easing back into fitness. - Daily Dares & Weekly Quests - This is like an injection of fun into my days -Mon, Wed, Fri Push ups- Week 1 - 5x5 (x) Week 2 - 10x5 () Week 3 - 15x5 () Week4 - 20x5 () I've really tried to keep my plan challenging but still easy and quick, with a baby and a toddler, I'll be pressed for time. Life Quest Genesis (x) Exodus () Leviticus () Numbers () Matthew (x) Mark (x) Luke () John () I'm not expecting this to be too difficult. We will see. That's all for now.

(i.e. “if you still don’t feel like doin’ it, raise the stakesâ€) The stuff I don’t feel like doing Working out: Going to martial arts class is second nature, but working out at home in my room? Eh. Workout goals: Convict Conditioning "Veterano" program, minus the rest day and handstand pushups, with at least one set at my current exercise level. Eat well: I'm already scrawny, and I tend to skip breakfast. Eating goals: Eat at least three meals per day. Also, gather recipes while watching my parents cook. Sleep: All those prejudices about gamers and TV watchers and sleep… they’re all true. And once I then oversleep and wake up at 1pm, I miss breakfast, adding to that sore point as well. Sleeping goals: Rise by 7:30am, sleep by 10:30pm; if I’m out at 10:30pm, sleep as soon as I’m back. The stakes My “student lifeâ€: I’ve been unemployed since Jan 2014, living at home with my parents. My parents agreed to support my search for a Ph.D. position through 2014, and afterwards, I had agreed to look into the (non-academic) job market. During Dec 2014, they agreed to extend this support until the then-recent application in Austria came through. (Which it did, earlier today: “no.â€) Once my parents remember that my student “lease†has expired, my student life as I know it is probably over. My “savingsâ€: I have upcoming expenses to pay by April, which I can only barely cover. And without an income, I’m pretty much stuck being broke. My “innocenceâ€: I’ve never baked a cake before. And I’d rather not try. Which makes it a perfect punishment. So, I pledge that if I don’t follow through with my goals, I’m going to bake two cakes, without asking for help: one for my family, and one for the Courier. The thing that’s different this time so that I don’t repeat the same mistakes This search for Ph.D. positions and my applications to those? I’m making it a proper job. Complete with scheduled work/break hours, dedicated time tracking, and reports to my CEO (i.e. my parents). I have sequencing rules for my activities, both to help turn some of them into a ritual and to otherwise make sure everything is considered. Those rules are: No shower before working out. No breakfast before shower. No “screens†before breakfast. No email before the first Ph.D. position search. No lunch before the first email check. No “soft†work before lunch. (“Hard†work is either searching for or writing an application for a Ph.D. position. “Soft†work is any other work that will indirectly help me get such a position, e.g. preparing a portfolio of projects, or rearranging my C.V.) No “clock out†without posting on the NF forums. (That’s still a major flaw of mine.) As a programmer, I can write tools to help me with my compliance. One such tool would be an automatic shutdown at 10:15pm. It’s currently in development. And I have ideas for how to technologically enforce rules #4–6.

It’s been long enough. Now it’s time for all-out war! Same old same old, but different. Still need to think about the “howâ€, though.

so challenge much late very continue wow I shall leave the spamming with Doge pics to those who are better at it than I am.

See the full challenge description for details. This is the abridged version. I feel like I've been going in circles for these past challenges. Nothing sticks for longer than a challenge or two. That's not a good reason to give up. And there are good reasons to continue. But it's a good reason to re-examine my strategy. But that is not a good reason to take a break. So I'm doing a "normal" challenge of sorts, but the actual task is to spend this time thinking about how to not go wrong again. Goals (as a homage to The Legend of Zelda, because Triforce, and I approve of trying force): Power: do Convict Conditioning exercises daily. Includes low-intensity, "off-day" exercises. Details to be posted later. Wisdom: rest enough, at the right time. Because sleep is an important part of health. Courage: apply for a job (as a Ph.D. student). Because selling oneself is scary. But necessary. Yes, if you read any of my previous challenges, then you've seen this before, in one way or another. That's the point. This isn't supposed to be novel, this is supposed to build a foundation. One that outlasts more than just a couple of challenges. Comments requested. Thanks for visiting.

The Story So Far: It was bright and sunny the day the Assassin came to town. I was standing at my new, high-tech standing desk, which was absolutely not just my regular desk with an old toy chest on top of it, when I heard a knock at the door. I went over an opened it, and an Elf stood there. I looked him up and down; I'd never seen an elf before. He towered over me, six feet tall if he was an inch, all covered in lean muscle. He wore leather armor, carried a long bow slung across his back, and had strange things on his feet that I'd never seen before. He would later tell me these were called "shoes", and protected his feet from hard surfaces. If only I'd had some of those last challenge! I realised I'd just been staring for a good five seconds, and extended my hand as I spoke. "Hi. I'm Salivanth. You must be the one Hazard told me about." "That's right." he replied. "Where's the shrine?" "You don't want a drink or something?" I asked. "No thank you." he said. "I'd rather just get to the shrine. Besides, I've brought my own. It's only a few kilometers, correct?" I confirmed this, so we left my hut, stopping only so I could grab a torch. As we did I noticed a horse standing there, tied to my fence post, with saddlebags attached. I concluded he must have provisions in there. Without further ado, we began our walk. I'm sure the Assassin must have been impatient with my glacially slow pace, but to his credit, he hid it well. I tried to pick up the pace somewhat, but lacking these foot-coverings, there was only so fast I could move. On the way, we made small talk. He didn't give particularly detailed answers, but I did find out the elves lived in a forest a couple of days northwest of Rushforth, and a bit about these "shoes" he was wearing. We reached the cave, and I gave him the directions, just in case something happened. Swiftly we made our way to the shrine and approached it. Absolutely nothing happened. "So how do we open it?" the Assassin asked. "It...should just be opening by itself. It did when I approached it." I said. "Alright." he said. "I'll head back up a little bit, see if it opens then. If it does, shout out." He headed up the corridor, and was swiftly out of sight. After a few seconds more, the door opened. "It's open!" I called out, voice echoing off the narrow walls. As soon as the Assassin walked back into sight, the doors closed again. "Alright." the Assassin said. He stroked his chin. "Either it's only opening for you, or more likely, it only opens for one person. Head back two caverns, and I'll come back and let you know what happens." I walked back to the cavern that was two caverns away from the shrine, and waited. After a minute, the Assassin walked up. "No luck." he said. "Do you have a Warrior's guild in the village?" "No, sir, I'm afraid not. We don't have any guilds in Rushforth; not many hobbits join up." I said. He raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Very well. I'll have to check my briefing materials and go check with the nearest one." We left the cave in silence, and then the Assassin spoke again. "I'll be back in a day or two with the equipment we need. I'll require your help, so be ready. Goodbye." The Assassin broke into a jog. It looked like he could do it all day, but it was still much faster than I would be able to muster. I settled for walking at my usual pace. When I returned to my house, the Assassin and his horse were gone.

In order to build anything sturdy, a strong foundation is required. Pyramids are build from the ground up, and so must physical fitness also be. And so a man's quest for personal perfection continues. A man has been wandering for the past several years, stopping to take substantial breaks but not long enough to nest. Without a specific and permanent place to consider "home", it would behoove one to follow George Clooney's advice in Up In The Air - travel light (Zombieland Rule #7). However, carrying your entire life on your back can still amount to a lot of belongings, and would put strain upon oneself, depending on carrying ability. It would require a strong pair of legs to support the load, and superior mobility to be able to move it. THE QUEST The main quest that a man has accepted is the Afghanistan Pre-Deployment Training Program. It is 6 weeks in duration and was designed to prepare one to operate in steep, rocky, mountainous environments by preparing the legs and the lungs for rugged terrain. 1. Climb The Mountain: Perform all 30 workouts prescribed in said program. (STR+1, STA+2, CON+1) 2. Conquer The Mountain: Perform all workouts to standard. (DEX+2, STA+3) 3. Feed Off The Earth: Eat out as seldom as possible, and log everything. (CON+2) Side Quest: Read one book. (WIS+4) THE MOTIVATION I look forward working with the rangers.

Main Quest:To build up a solid foundation of habits to propel me towards my ultimate goal of being a master of my own body weight. Mission #1: Convict Conditioning New Blood program (+2 STR, +1 DEX, +1 CHA)Two workouts per week, alternating with pushups/leg raises on one day and pullups/squats on the other.Mission #2: 0 to 1650 swim challenge. (+3 STA, +1 CON)Had difficulties with this last challenge mostly due to sickness and other unexpected circumstances.Will continue starting at week 3 of the plan. Mission #3: Recovery. Lights out by 10pm each night. (+2 CON, +1 WIS)To support recovery on my workouts and a fresh, clear mind for work and training.Life Mission: Study Android Development 8 focused hours per week outside of work. (+2 WIS, +2 CHA)I have long neglected my career training. This will be a first step to getting back where I should be.I will likely have a lot of time to work on this at work, so my goal is based on personal time spent versus an amount of material covered.Grading:Mission #1 (in days): A = 12, B = 11, C = 10, D = 9, F = 8 or lessMission #2 (in days): A = 16-18, B = 14-15, C = 12-13, D = 10-11, F = 9 or lessMission #3 (in days): A = 27-30, B = 24-26, C = 21-23, D = 18-20, F = 17 or lessLife Mission #4 (in hours): A = 44-48, B = 39-43, C = 34-39, D = 29-33, F = 28 or less Rewards per goal: A = 100%, B = 75%, C = 50%, D = 25%, F = 0% Motivation:To be a Master of my own body weight and an example of health to my wife and kids.

Alright, this is it. This is the one. No more excuses. Hi. This is me. (Warning: Shirtless chubby/fat 20-year-old) Looking at those pictures is painful. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not in the best shape in the world. Certainly not the worst, but definitely not where I need or want to be. At twenty years old, I'm ashamed of my body. That's enough reason for me to want to change. Main Quest Over the next six weeks I am going to build a strong foundation for better physical health. At the moment I don’t have much going for me physically. I'm incredibly weak for my age. And while I’m trying to improve my diet, I’m not as consistent as I’d like to be. With that in mind, here are the steps I want to take: No more sugary drinks. My liquid intake will be restricted to straight water, unsweetened tea or sugar-free flavored water packs. Start a bodyweight exercise routine. I don’t really have a whole lot going on in the upper-body department (as you can see), so I think it’s time to finally start incorporating some upper-body workouts. I haven't decided what my routine will be yet, but I'll keep everyone posted on my progress. Keep up with my cardio. At the moment I try to run at least three times per week. I'm usually pretty good about keeping with my schedule, but I'll often find myself slipping up and not going here and there. I want to stick with it and try to build my endurance. Right now I'm using the Zombies, Run! app on my phone to track my progress, and use it as a motivator.Life Quest It took a lot of thinking, as there are so many aspects of my life itself that I want to improve, but I finally settled on something. Over the next six weeks, I want to read--and write about--at least five non-fiction books. I've only really just began seriously delving into non-fiction, and I have a whole stack of books that I’d like to read over the course of the next six weeks, starting with Fabric of Freedom by Esmond Wright. I feel non-fiction will help me broaden my horizons and help me finally delve deeper into things I've always been interested in. Motivation I’m doing this because I want a better tomorrow. I'm always the guy that looks forward to the future, who dreams about all the possibilities life can throw at me. And I want a tomorrow where I can look into the mirror at the end of the night and say 'yes, today I worked hard, learned something I didn't know before, and did something to benefit my future.' I’d be lying if I said I’m not doing this for vanity’s sake too. I want to look good for other people, and I want to feel and know that I look good. I’d like to be able to fit into those clothes I like, and wear them well enough to be noticed.

Main Quest: To build up a solid foundation of habits to propel me towards my ultimate goal of being a master of my own body weight. Grades: All goals will be converted to a percentage completed successfully and given a grade letter as shown A = 90 – 100% complete = 100% of the rewards B = 80 – 90% complete = 75% of the rewards C = 70 – 80% complete = 50% of the rewards D = 60 – 70% complete = 25% of the rewards F = less than 60% complete = no rewards First Mission: Lose the Extra Poundage. Continuing from my last partial challenge, I’ll be carving off the extra pounds. My Target weight is 190 lbs. It is where I feel my best and it is also where I need to be to earn the $500 Weight Loss incentive from my health insurance company. Grading: Grading will be based on the percent of days (out of 42) where my net Calories are no more than 1500 Calories. This should have me losing at somewhere near 2 lbs per week I hope. I will use My Fitness Pal to track Calories consumed and burned through exercise. I will have one bonus day per week where my Calorie Limit will be 2300 (my approximate BMR). Rewards: + 2 Constitution and + 1 Charisma after week 3 + 1 Constitution after challenge Second Mission: Build Functional Strength Here I will build the strength foundation for mastering my body weight. I will be faithfully following the Convict Conditioning New Blood program. One day per week (usually Monday’s) I will work the Push-up and Leg Raise movements. A well separated second day of the week (usually Friday’s) I will work the Pull-up and Squat movements. These will always include warm up sets and stretching afterwards. Grading: Grading will be based on the percent of planned (12 total) that are completed faithfully to the program and with warm up and stretching. Rewards: + 1 Strength and + 1 Dexterity after week 3 + 1 Strength after challenge Third Mission: Build Endurance and Burn Calories. To support my weight loss and build endurance, I will be attacking the cardio. I enjoy swimming and it gets my whole body into the act so I will be dominating the 0 to 1650 Swim Challenge. This challenge demands swimming 3 days per week with a strict regimen to conquer swimming a swimmer’s mile (1650 yards) by the end of 6 weeks. This of course works splendidly with the NF 6 week challenge. Grading: This will be graded based on the number of days that I complete the recommended workout based on the number of workouts planned (18 total). It will not be based on achieving the non-stop mile. If I need to repeat a workout because I’m struggling, then I will, but I must always be challenged. Rewards: + 2 Stamina Points after week 3 + 1 Stamina Point after challenge Life Mission: Be Productive – Make Progress Okay, so I struggle with staying productive on things I need to get done at work and home, especially when I’m obsessing about something “newâ€. I’m also an information addict which makes it even harder. My mission here is to stay productive at work and at home. At work, this will mean that for each work day, I will not allow anything non-work to cause a significant hit to my productivity. Non-work related things are okay as long as they don’t consume much time or are not on the clock. At home, this will mean making significant progress on something every day. It doesn’t have to be a lot, just something that moves me forward at home. This could be cleaning out a draw, time spent organizing my paperwork, or deep cleaning a room. Grading: I will grade my work and home productivity separately and then take the average of the two grades for my overall grade. There are 30 work days and 42 total days in the 6 week challenge. So if I am productive at work 22 days and at home 35 days, then my grade would be 22 out of 30 for work or 73% and 35 out of 42 for home or 83%. Total grade would then be the average of 73% and 83% which is 78%. Rewards: + 3 Wisdom after 3 weeks + 1 Wisdom after challenge Motivation: To be a Master of my own body weight and an example of health to my wife and kids.