Is it time to try again?

Looking at challenges differently.

You can’t be online nowadays without seeing someone talk about some challenge they are doing. 75 Hard, 75 Soft, 30-Day Challenges, Life Makeovers, etc., seem to be everywhere.

You’ve probably even tried them for yourself. I know I have. But if you’re anything like me, and you just might be since you’re here, you’ve crashed and failed spectacularly each and every time.

The thing with these challenges is they don’t leave any allowance for life to happen. You miss one day and you’re supposed to start over again.

I swore off challenges long ago. Why put myself through the stress they cause without any benefit because I never stick with them?

Over the last few weeks, though, I’ve seen a couple of YouTube videos talking about challenges. They both reference a prompt that if someone were watching your life, would they know what your goals were?

These challenges they are doing feel different–softer, more forgiving. They’re building habits gently, allowing for life and imperfection.

This is my kind of thinking. Habits and momentum over motivation and dedication, which only leave me burnt out.

Sarra Cannon of Heart Breathings is doing a Project 180. What I love about what she’s doing is not trying to do everything at once. She’s taking 180 days to slowly build up the habits that she wants to continue for the rest of her life.

She took the entire first month to get herself in a place‌ where she was ready for the challenge while dealing with COVID and the death of her mother-in-law. Using the time to rest, recover and plan how the rest of the time would go.

I don’t know anyone who has ever started a challenge with these kinds of obstacles and still continued forward.

I’m in a place right now where I need ‌an extra push to get to where I want to be in life. I’m finally getting back to a good place with my daily and weekly movement goals, but my eating habits are still lingering. I also would really like to stop ignoring the clutter in my house and deal with it. My doomscrolling has gotten a bit out of hand as of late, and my journaling has fallen by the wayside.

Right now, I’m unofficially using the momentum I have going with my writing and my movement to stack the other habits I want to work on.

This week I’m starting to focus on tracking my calories to get my eating back under control. I will eventually add daily nonfiction reading and journaling habits as I gain footing with each habit. When it no longer feels like work to include the newest, I will include the next.

I won’t quit when I miss a day or two. I will plan ahead for my vacation at the end of the month, so it doesn’t take me completely off course.

This has always been where I trip up the most. I miss those days and then never get back to it. Consistency is what will get me to the life I want. That is one where I’m active and mobile, learning and traveling for as long as possible.

I have figured out what the life I actually want looks like. Now I need to take the steps to make it happen. This doesn’t mean I’m going to become an uber productive, ambitious person. It just means that I’m not going to always allow myself to be comfy.

We can have slow mornings and days, without urgency and filling them completely, but still move our lives forward.

I was visiting with my aunt last weekend and we were talking about the stark differences in people in their 60s and 70s nowadays. Some of the 70-year-olds could pass for 50, while some of the 60-year-old look and act 80.

The difference between them was the ones who seemed older had become complacent. They spend their time relaxing on the couch, only to never find their way off the darn thing.

This is exactly what I’m writing about and trying to achieve with this Substack.

I’ve become clear on what brings me joy and what I want my life to look like over the last couple of years. And I’ve been getting closer to achieving that life. But I still have work to do.

Honestly, I never want to stop growing because that’s when you become stagnant and stuck on the couch. But I also have to do it in a way that’s sustainable for me. I’ve burnt out before and don’t care to repeat it.

I want a calmer, softer life, but not one that has me aging faster than I want to be.

Does this sound like you? I’d love to know if it is. My goal is to build a community of like-minded people who can support each other.

If so, take some time to consider what your ideal life would be. Each day do something that moves you forward toward that life.

We can do this together friends, without the pressure and stress.

Until next time, stay cozy.