Weirdo Challenges: Update 2024
Tank Curling. It’s a thing. This time of year, we’re bombarded with articles on resolutions, anti-resolutions, word-for-theyear, intensions, goal-planning, and bucket-lists of all sorts. LinkedIn even has an annual #BigIdeas202X, and so on… I have what I call “The List” or “Life Resume.” My List isn’t some fleeting, obsessional to-do-list or collection of soon to be forgotten resolutions that just fizzled and got lost in a drawer, instead it has become an adjunctive (or even augmenting) blue-print for my life. It has turned out to be a terrific motivator to fight-off inertia, lethargy, and couch-potatoism. As for my List, it has evolved as many such wacky things like jet skis and parasailing didn't exist when I authored my first version. Seems like I tend to often be attracted to doing things where the goal isn’t to win, per se, but to just be happy to be able to finish (or live to tell about it). It is terrific fun to put a check-mark by another challenge when it's accomplished. It is terrific excitement to have a list of things to look forward to doing. It is a terrific motivator to run or
work-out on those I'm-lazy-and-can-come-up-with-a-million-excuses-to-not-workout-days if I have committed to doing the World’s Tallest stair-climb race, or a marathon, or even just a 5K. The List has been instrumental in designing training routines and nutritional regimens that have helped me stay below 10% body fat as well as summit technical rock faces and 3 of the world's 7 summits so far. (And hey, not all fun activities take a lot of training to accomplish, like gaining a racing license for road racing motorcycles at Road America.) And for me, most of them are NOT physical or athletic, but the weird ones seem to be. That’s why I thought I share some of mine here. I hope you may find this of use, inspiration, or just fun. (This is my revised version.) In high school I had a best friend who was an amazing competitive swimmer, and had there not been a boycott of the 1980 Olympics, I am certain he would have been in Moscow that summer. As his training was mile after mile of pool laps, he converted his daily mileage to a paper map of the Mississippi and plotted the distances as if he had swam down the river, which was not only fun, but motivating for him as well. Today there are a number of versions of such things, and I just finished Tank Curling. That is, from December 4th to January 21st, I curled two 45 pound dumbbells, 20 reps (10 each arm) for 3 sets. The math is 45 pounds x 2 arms x 10 reps x 3 sets = 2700 pounds. An Abrams Tank weights around 55 tons (give or take) or 110,000 pounds. I did this 41 times = 110,700. As a sampler, here are of some of my other Weirdo Challenges: • The Climb Everest Challenge (my daughter recommended that one to me) • Jesse Itzler’s crazy 29029 Everesting (I did the Vermont venue) • The Murph Challenge (1 mile run+100 pullups+200 pushups+300 squats+1 mile run, all while wearing a 20 lb vest) • Colin O’Brady’s 12 Hour Walk • The 100 Ton Club • Completed P90X (with a love/hate relationship with Tony Horton) • Strongman Stone Lifting (I moved and placed 3 truckloads of granite averaging 175 pounds per cubic foot, thus my estimate of this project is 30’ x 12’ x 175# = 63,000#) • Ran ultra-distances of 100k, Double Marathon, 50 Miler, so far • Joined the Polar Bear Club, and swam in Lake Michigan on 1/1/2024 • World’s Largest 10K (Guinness Medalist) • Completed 3 of the World’s 7 Summits • Tons of stair climbs – Sears/Willis Tower, Handcock, Aon Building, Maritime Museum in Door County (11 x 10 stories) • Bicycle Criterion Road Racing (USCF Cat IV Licensed) and numerous Hilly 100s, Centuries, Metric Centuries and 100 Milers, earning Millennium Club Membership (1000 miles in 34 events), most recently the Peninsula Century 50 Miler • Survived Running of the Bulls • Completed various Fire Runs/Obstacle course races, along with numerous 5Ks (many with my son and daughter), 10Ks, and a fun Soldier Field 10 Miler, ending at the 50 Yard line of the Chicago Bears Soldier Field • Completed The Ridges Trail Classic 10K (hiking)
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Years ago, I did a “Summer” Biathlon (target shooting and trail running), in 2023, I participated in a Competitive Marksmanship League, and had a score that met the scoring standard for an expert qualification. • Flew an Advanced Aerobatic Marchetti SF – 260 doing Air Combat (and stalled the engine mid-loop!) (Here is entire List, both to-do and done.) Tools: • I’m a big fan of the SlackBlock, a balance trainer that helps improve strength, stability, and power in the feet, ankles, and hips. It's used by professional athletes and Division 1 teams, of which I belong to neither. • I do the Wim Hof breathing technique daily, and when Wim was on my podcast we had a minor fuss about the research, but nevertheless, I do it daily. • Speaking of breathing, it’s one of my problem areas (long story), so I also use the O2 Trainer that regulates air intake and improves muscle oxygen efficiency during exercise. It was designed by Bas Rutten to increase inspiratory muscle endurance. • I also love my Suunto watch. It has a great companion app for nerding out on metrics, plus has a great battery life, can run my phone’s audio, etc. • I use the free version of Zero, to keep track and help motivate me in doing a daily >18 intermittent fast/time restricted eating routine. (Note, I have no affiliate or commercial relationships with any of the above noted products or experiences, I personally bought and paid for any and all, for my use.) Next up for this year and beyond: • Ice Age Trail’s Mammoth Hike Challenge • Hike Bhutan’s Tiger’s Nest (Taktsang) Monastery • Trek to Everest Base Camp and climb Lobuche • Automotive Motorsports: Join the Ultimate Street Car Association and compete in their 5 Challenges: Road Rally, Acceleration and Braking, Autocross, Road Course, and Design and Engineering. Race on Road America and Blackhawk Farms, do the Mountain Mille Rally, and Land Speed Race. • Motorcycle Motorsports: Land Speed Race, Road Race at Road America. If you are like me, sometimes adding a little weird to your workouts can not only be fun, but also oddly motivating. I encourage you to give it a go, and who knows, maybe you will walk to the moon or bench press a 747. You may also like our podcast, Living a Life in Full. You can listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, SoundCloud, YouTube Podcasts, Pandora, iHeartRADIO, and pretty much anywhere you listen to podcasts, or download here. Please subscribe on your favorite platform and never miss an episode or sign up for our monthly notification. It’s like a gym membership for your brain. Here are the show notes. If you'd like to learn more or connect, please do, just click here. You can join my email list to keep in touch. Tools and my podcast are available via http://ALifeInFull.org. And be sure
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