“You see this guy here? That’s the toughest opponent you’re ever going to have to face. I believe that’s true in the ring, and I think that’s true in life. Now show me something.”

If Week 5 was the worst week, in terms of commitment, Week 6 has proven to be the absolute toughest week I have ever done.

Thus it is a new type of worse.

The heat.

God, the heat.

I really suffered on Wednesday. The incredible heat seared every part of my body and I found myself gasping and struggling for air, with every pore crying out for some kind of cool-down.

I have never had to take a proper break. But I did. And I wimped out at 40 minutes.

Every minute of that Wednesday workout was agony. I wanted to give up so many times. The female announcer on my ipod nano would say “5 minutes” and honestly, it felt like I did 15 minutes of working out.

Even after I took a super cold shower, I stepped out and just felt heat radiate from every pore, as my body did its best to cool down. It was like some bizarre engine, trying to bleed out excess heat.

I guess that is the price I pay for training outside. But I am too attached to my free “outside humiliation” gym now. It hasn’t cost me a single cent, and I just use equipment that’s already available to me.

I told myself last week, that I would re-arm and re-focus and clear my evil eye.

Just wasn’t ready for that heat. Still, this week has been the most consistent, with 6 days of working out, and me covering 29.9km.

After writing this, I might just go out and run, just to hit 30km.

Skipping, Running, Walking, Push-Ups and Sit-Ups.

That’s the routine every day and admittedly, I feel like I got a lot more in the tank now.

I’m sprinting harder and faster, my skipping is flowing more and I can go on one foot or swing the rope side to side.

The intensity can be ramped up a bit more if I didn’t have such a weird busted left leg. Maybe I really did pull a muscle and its just not healing quickly enough for me.

But that’s too bad. I just got to fight through the pain and deal with it. I’m not stopping and I’m committing myself to this self-punishing asylum.

Maybe Week 8, I’ll start pushing it to 1 hour and 15 minutes.

I also have to admit, that there was another reason why I went ahead and trained in the heat, despite the searing sensation I felt in my lungs later that day ….

It was to emulate both the famous desert training sequence in Creed II and the fact that I made the bold promise to be a volunteer firefighter next year (probably March).

If I can’t stand 40 degree heat …. how can I become a firefighter?

I have to get used to the shortness of breath, the insane toll, heat takes on you and the sweatiness of it all.

I have to say though, the workout the day after, in normal heat, felt so much better and I managed to push even harder.

This is what I’ve written so far, A Blocked Lyricism.

Its meant to be a strange song about Writer’s Block.

Its not very good, but it is an attempt.

I’ll keep at it. Nothing gets better without practice.

A lot of things have been weighing down my mind recently. Festival work, Boyfriend commitments, Workout commitment, Miniso work …. the whole challenge of making myself write twice a week ….

I can sense it ageing me. A lot of people comment on how tired I look.

But that’s the grind. I mean, I would like to hope that at some point, it’ll be normal for me to work out twice a day. Once in the morning, once in the afternoon.

I just got to keep going at it.

One Step at a Time. One Punch at a Time. One Round at a Time.

There’s a mantra I ended up adopting in that searing heat, when I was gasping for air and any breeze. Where everything felt like it was on fire and I couldn’t think straight.

You broken?

No sir.

Then get up.

I would whisper that call and response over and over.

Its late now (12:36am) and I should sleep. But I still got another 100 metres to run.

Better get to it.

Might as well skip for a bit too. Clear my head.

Get evil again.

~Damocles.

Lots to think about. I’ve slacked off in Week 5. Its time to reassess, re-arm and remove the mental walls. Time to get evil.

Right off the bat, I am going to say that this week has simply not been good enough.

I skipped 3 days. Monday, Tuesday and Saturday.

Monday and Tuesday, I had things on and couldn’t do it. Poor excuses for missing them.

I especially despise my excuse for Saturday …. I took a nap, and by the time I woke up, it was too late to exercise.

Or maybe in my head it was too late.

Should I train at 9pm?

Maybe I should. Who cares if its dark.

Been a long week of disappointment.

And yes, the format has changed. I’m going to put less statistics, as its a bit dull, and only put the total calories and kilometres done.

23.25 kilometres

1579 calories.

It should be more than 30 kilometres.

God I’m annoyed at myself.

Speaking of being annoyed …. here is my latest written post.

Its essentially a huge rant about the situation down here in Australia.

Not happy.

It has not been a very good week overall. I’ve slacked off, ever since I hit the month mark.

You ever get that feeling that you celebrated too early and suddenly, before you realise, you’ve lost all the progress you made?

Yeah, that’s how I feel at the moment.

In other news, I am now currently halfway through my Napoleon book. Still bloody riveting, I can’t believe his rise … and now I am about to go through his fall and subsequently his resurrection.

It always surprises me how destiny simply blesses a certain figure that will rise to titantic stature due to being in the right place, at the right time, with the right skill-set and charisma.

Napoleon was lucky, skilled, innovative and admittedly an incredible forward thinker. I think the thing that made him so formidable, so inventive and so dangerous, was his ability to question everything and gather as much intelligence as he could.

There are many reports of him questioning people who knew better, just so that he could fill gaps in his knowledge. He would walk the plains where battles were held, so he could manoeuvre his troops better and would accurately feed disinformation to his enemies through false deserters.

Equally interestingly, was his suppression of the press and falsifying reports about his victories and losses. The French population would not hear about Trafalgar, one of his most famous losses, until 1814, nine years after the battle was won.

Emperor/dictators …. they get a lot done, with some loss to freedoms.

Makes me wonder if its worth it?

Perhaps.

But then I admit I’ve always been more or less an anarchist, or a person who would rather lose some of his freedoms for an extremely clever and efficient leader.

Yeah I’m weird that way. I just don’t trust people to make the right choices when it comes to

Anyway, I digress …

This week’s workout has already for me tired. Today’s heat caused me to pause twice, and sweat excessively. I am low-key dreading the next couple of days where the heat will only get worse.

But … if Creed could do it, then I suppose I have to push through.

60 minutes has been kicking my ass though, now that I’ve also increased the intensity of my workout, with longer runs, added core exercises (sit ups and wall sits) and more advanced skipping exercises.

I’ve also decided what my ideal weight is …. anywhere below 70kgs.

Its the standard weight for all Formula 1 drivers and if its good enough for them to be the fastest people on land, then its good enough for me.

My last measurement was 82kgs.

That’s 13+ kilograms to trim down.

It definitely did not help that I am pretty sure I snacked a bit too much in Week 5.

All around, after all the positivity of the first 4 weeks, this is a set-back.

But the heat is turning up.

Its up to me to stay cool, stay focused and hungry.

Literally.

~ Damocles.

This was and will remain the view …. every-day for the past month. My three constant companions is the Runnin (feat. A$AP Rocky), my skipping rope and my beat-up TeamMONASH water bottle. 45 mins. Soon to be 60.

Exercise Statistics:

6 workouts – Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday

Furthest Distance – 5.43km

Run Distance – 28.77km

Time – 5 hrs

Calories – 1938

Average workout time – 50 mins

Biggest news first.

I’ve lost a confirmed 2kg in the whole month. Sitting at 82kg now.

Not bad. But I feel like there was some definite room for improvement. The biggest one being if I didn’t push myself so hard during Week 3 and thus pull both my leg muscles, I would have seen better gains.

I also need to watch my diet a lot more. Just because this is becoming routine, doesn’t mean I should start slacking off my diligence when it comes to the amount of food I eat.

Dieting is tougher than exercising.

Drink more Damocles. Drink water. Drink anything, but don’t snack.

On a more positive note …. skipping has become a slight mania for me. I’m now jumping smaller and faster, feeling more light on my feet and the rope movement is speeding up.

Its a good feeling. Now I just have to get the perfect swing side to side and I’ll start looking like some amateur boxer.

This next month or so, I will have to boost the intensity. Maybe skip for longer. Sprint a bit harder …. they say that the closer you get to your goal, the harder it is.

I have to focus and don’t let myself slip.

Consumption:

I ended up eating a whole bag of Trolli’s gummy worms on Wednesday, where I decided to take a day off.

Tsk. Relapse. I feel extremely guilty afterwards.

I ended up pushing myself even harder on Thursday.

Intellectual Exercise:

Maths: Has taken a hit. I haven’t solved a problem in a while, since I’ve been so busy with the TET Festival and redesigning a website. Have to maintain more discipline. Need to get back to answering those daily questions. It only takes 15 minutes damnnit.

English: Read my ramble about my addiction to speed and why it has defined almost everything I do. Need for Speed.

Reading: Thank god though, that I haven’t slipped here. I’ve taken to the habit of bringing my water bottle and Napoleon book everywhere. I have just reached one of the heights and incredible low of Napoleon’s career …. the battle for Austerlitz and Trafalgar.

Its truly amazing how much his tactical genius shone, and ushered in a whole new rulebook that would last till 1945.

I would like a better EDC (Every Day Carry) bag though. I would like to stick my SOF Tactical Tourniquet in there, as well a powerbank for my accursed Galaxy 9.

Would probably like to shop more to better improve my overall EDC ideology, but that can wait once all my crazy purchases for TET has been handled.

Speaking of the festival, observe my website? Send through any feedback.

That about sums up Week 4. The first month of the Before 30 Challenge.

Overall, I guess I am pleased with my progress.

But like all annoying perfectionists who value efficiency in all things, I can’t help feel I could have done a bit better.

You’re always 2 seconds slower than you would like to be.

Gah.

Just have to apply myself even harder.

~Damocles

 

 

Lucas Botkin & Liku in a T.Rex Arms video, showcasing why dry-firing can translate over to real practical shooting skills. Lucas has been somewhat of an inspiration for me, his factual, documentary-style tutorials, overall aesthetic of website and videos and no-bullshit attitude are refreshing in this world of stupid talk. Plus he started his own company, T.Rex Arms, a holster manufacturer, at the age of 19 and is now teaching law enforcement and military members on the finer aspect of shooting …. despite being self-taught. 

Exercise Statistics:

5 workouts – Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday.

Furthest Distance – 4.88km

Run Distance –  22.74km

Time – 4.04 hrs

Calories – 1532

Average workout time – 48 mins

I have to say, the break between last Friday’s workout and my follow-up one on Tuesday was easily the biggest morale breaker for me.

I have never felt so incredibly sluggish when starting my workout on Tuesday and to top it off, I had extended it by another 15 minutes. I somehow felt far worse than I did the previous week and I just didn’t want to do it.

By Wednesday though, I was feeling better.

However the Saturday was the roughest. I woke up early, as to not miss out my workout and on an empty stomach, did my routine.

Skip, Skip, Skip. Run, Run, Run. Push-up, Push-up, Push-up.

Repeat.

Throw in a squat or two. Side step instead of run. Walk if I am feeling too tired to run. I throw in a couple of draws too.

At the end of my workout, I always push myself to run to the end of the block, instead of just the small 30 metre distance I set myself.

I pushed myself so hard, I ended up pulling my calf muscle.

I gave it 110%. I know that I can’t get better if I don’t push myself. I have to push to the point of failure.

But …

That ended up with me skipping Sunday to let my leg recover.

And compromised my pace today on Monday.

Damn leg.

Consumption:

Not much snacking. I ended up eating all my supply on Monday and so for the whole week …. I ended up not eating anything crazy and surprisingly didn’t find any cravings. I still need to drink more water though.

Still washing my face though. Those eye-bags are still extremely prominent.

Intellectual Exercise:

Maths: OK. I remember the smaller things. Like 180 degrees in a triangle. Struggling with algebra. Which is incredibly annoying, since I used to rule algebra.

English: Here is the latest: The GAFA Child.

Reading: I am a bit disappointed with myself. I have been reading a bit less. Probably due to the insane amount of stress I’ve gone through this week, particularly in regards to the TET festival. I’ve been so worked up and concerned, I’ve almost stopped reading.

Got to get back into it. I need to learn to bring my book with me and my water bottle everywhere.

Probably should just learn to accept bags in my life to be honest. Even though I hate wearing them.

That sums up Week 3.

What a struggle it has been to get out of the three day funk. On the plus side, my skipping is getting more efficient and faster.

My stamina still needs a lot more work and how to maintain a high level of proficiency over my body at what I feel is 90%.

I want to raise that 90% effort to a high level.

Next week, Week 4 marks a whole month of this routine. I will also be measuring myself.

Am I nervous?

Damn right I am.

I hope to see some small change occur.

~Damocles.

 

There’s MarioKart ….. and then there’s Karting for Mario. I like to think I’m always racing for Mario cos of my early love for MarioKart 64.

Exercise Statistics

5 Workouts – Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday.

Furthest Distance – 3.14km

Run Distance – 14.37km

Time – 4.8 hrs

Calories – 1424

Steps – 9593

Average workout time – 31 mins

I have managed to get into a more regimental discipline about my exercise. 7.30pm or 8pm is my usual time to exercise for half-hour. I start with skipping, then a short run, then walk for a spell, throw in 10 push-ups and then rinse and repeat.

I do it all on the road, using my car and the end of my block as a measure of distance. I skip in public, feeling better that strangers are judging me, and thus forcing me to go the distance than quit halfway in ignominy.

I feel the last of the sun, then the cold of the night wraps around me in that half hour.

Its nice.

I’ve had to skip 3 days out of the 7, and I admit, I’m not incredibly happy about that. But next week, starting Monday, the time is going to stretch to 45 minutes. If you don’t push yourself, how can you ever improve?

On a different note, I have been karting twice this month, and I’ll be the first to admit, I am pleasantly surprised to see that I am come first twice amongst a lot of amateurs. It means my racing is getting better and that’s all I want to see happen, if I am ever to make it in a professional setting.

My line needs to be cleaner, my momentum faster and my braking points later …. as someone once said …. I’m always 2 seconds slower than where I want to be.

Practice? I hear you say?

Yeah, sure if I can afford 35 dollars for a 10 minute session.

Fortunately I have a wheel rig attached to my computer.

So off to the simulator I go.

Consumption:

Surprisingly, its better. I’m snacking less and feeling a bit less hung up about it. I don’t need to have it as much as last week and I’m drinking a lot more water.

Another plus, is that because of the exercise I do, now I wash my face regularly. Lots of car fumes, dirt and sweat to remove.

Maybe I can get some semblance of handsome-ness with good skin care?

Sure, Damocles I hear you say. That’s like claiming, with skin care, Revlon and surgery you could one day rival Cillian Murphy, when in all honesty you probably resemble Pete Postlethwaite more.

(Google them. Hard to think they were father and son in Inception.)

Intellectual Exercise:

Maths: Steady improvement. Not much else to say. I reckon I can pass Grade 6 maths now. Grade 8? Still getting 60% pass rates.

English: Here is my latest. The Bushranger.

Reading: I am now up to the part where Napoleon has just claimed sovereignty over France. And its incredible how much he has reversed the damage the Revolution inflicted on itself in France. Goes to show how the combination of charisma, clear leadership, efficient and clever governship can literally transform an entire country.

What a leader he was.

I can rightly say, I am an admirer. And I wish there were more dictators.

Everything else seems so inefficient and maddeningly slow.

Here is a list of the new words I’ve learn this week:

1. Revanchism
   • a policy of seeking retaliation. Especially for lost territory
2. soi-disant
   • self-styled … so-called.
3. Histrionically
   • over-dramatising your speech
4. Bishopric
   • a diocese under a bishop’s control
5. Oleaginously
   • oily …. falsely or smugly earnest.
6. sangfroid
   • composure/coolness shown in dangerous conditions
7. Epistolary
   • in the form of letters
8. Pusillanimous
   • timid
9. Semaphore
   • a alphabet of signals using arms/flags.
10. Arraigned
    • call or bring someone to court
11. Scrimshaw
    • scroll-work/engraving done on bone.

That about sums about Week 2.

They say it takes a month to really let everything become muscle memory.

Means I still have another 2 weeks.

That equates to another 14 days of my custom Rocky playlist, especially my power song: Runnin’ from Creed 2 composer Ludwig Goransson.

Nothing gets me more amped than that.

I think I am doing all right.

But no gain was ever fully earned by feeling all right.

Its time I left this comfort zone and push even harder.

Chat to you all in the third week.

I hope the Bushranger proves a nice read!

~Damocles.

Exercise Statistics

Height: 174cm

Weight: 84kg

BMI: 27.7 (Overweight)

Recommended weight range: 56-75.4kg 

I have been extremely slow to get my exercise regime going. I only started today, 7 days after I promised myself I would get going. A clear sign of my reluctance to exercise and mental difficulty in motivating myself to do it.

But that is the truth. I skipped today for 30 mins, mixed with running and a couple of sets of push-ups.

Burnt 110 calories. A pittance for many.

I need to engage myself more. 1/2 hour of working out is too little, and yet …. I can’t be bothered to do it.

Making this shameful report though, did force me out.

Consumption:

Its been a remarkable struggle. I have been drinking a lot more water as a result of trying to combat the snack pangs that my stomach have been having. It has taken me a surprising amount of willpower not to eat more and no doubt has contributed to my lack of motivation to exercise.

There are snacks at work. Snacks at Coles, Woolworths … all these temptations gnaw at me and my stomach and is arguably very difficult to control.

I bought myself the Natural Confectionary Co. 10 Mini Fruity Gems Bags in an effort to control myself. I ran out of those by Friday.

Its tougher than I thought to turn off the sugar cravings. But push through I shall

Intellectual Exercise

Maths: I am little better than a Year 8 student. Its embarrassing how much my maths skills have slipped. Algebra, division, square root …. a lot of these skills are rusty and in dire need of practice-repair. I have been working on this site Maths Buddy Online every day, from Grade 1 to 8. I have gotten more than my fair share of wrong answers.

But its slowly improving.

English: See for yourself here: Dialogue Practice 1

Reading: I have started Andrew Roberts’ Napoleon the Great and frankly its brilliant. The book is thick, hefty, with tiny script and thoroughly engaging with its wordplay and hefty anecdotes from Napoleon’s 33,000 letters.

I am only up to page 145 of 820, and no doubt, finishing this book will be a long task, like how I read James Clavell’s magnum opus: Shogun  during high school. I love that book still. It is so rare to find such a readable and robust book and I am glad I have started again.

The Napoleonic Wars remains my favourite period of history, and it is still a delight to read about that era of humanity, and just why Napoleon truly defined the period in which he ruled. The book itself is so engaging, because Napoleon himself is such an incredible character.

If you had to read a book about the man himself, look no further than this.

Most amusing to me, is that, like a lot of great men who rose to incredible power, he’s not even a native of France. He’s a Corsican.

On a more tangible note …. here are all the new words I’ve learnt:

1. Bicameral
   • Having two chambers. A term predominantly to describe type of governance.
2. Cicatrix
   • The scar of a healed wound.
3. Coglione
   • Italian for asshole.
4. Elan
   • Energy, style and enthusiasm (something I lack for physical exercises)
5. Impecunious
   • Having little or no money.
6. Manque
   • Having failed to become what one might have been (Napoleon was a writer manque)
7. Miasma
   • An unpleasant or unhealthy smell or vapour.
8. Septuagenarian
   • A person between 70 to 79 years old.

That sums up Week 1.

I am feeling intellectually more stimulated and keen to write more, even if I do ape after my hero, and am a writer manque.

I definitely have more room to improve on in regards to the physical aspect.

There is still a very long way to go before I hit the ideal 74kg goal.

On a side note, all this stimulation has also fired me up for my own business Tofu Events. I am also keen to pick up a language. But I should pace myself a bit.

Who knew living healthy had so many benefits?

non ducor, duco. (I am not led, I lead)

~Damocles

Such a pity this isn’t a real image of Napoleon. However, it does display the immense charisma, incredible work ethic and sheer magnetism of the man. I’ve always liked this image though.