Challenge Rules

Move of the Day

Do the strength move assigned to that day and record how many reps you completed. For the plank, record seconds instead. Completing the move earns the point.

• Monday — Squat + opposite knee/elbow: Squat down, stand up, bring right knee toward left elbow. Squat again, then left knee toward right elbow. Right + left = 1 rep.
• Tuesday — Push-ups: Hands on floor, body straight, lower chest toward floor, push back up. Knees down is fine if full push-ups are too much for now.
• Wednesday — Reverse lunges: Stand tall. Step one foot backward, lower yourself, come back up, then repeat with the other leg. Right + left = 1 rep.
• Thursday — Supermans: Lie on your stomach. Lift arms and legs off the floor, hold briefly, then lower.
• Friday — Mountain climbers: Start in a push-up position. Bring one knee toward your chest, then the other. You can start slowly rather than running them. Right + left = 1 rep.
• Saturday — Glute bridges: Lie on your back, knees bent, feet on the floor. Push your hips upward, squeeze your butt, then lower. Later, you can progress to one-leg bridges.
• Sunday — Plank: Forearms and toes on the floor, body straight. Hold until your core is working hard and your position begins getting difficult. Record seconds, not reps.

The goal is not to hit a prescribed number. Do the move until you feel the muscles working hard, then do one or two more if your form is still good. Your number is there so you can compare it with the same move the following week and see your progress.

Protein in the morning

Get protein in the morning.

Protein early in the day helps prevent the crash-and-snack cycle later. It gives the day a better starting point.

This point can be checked early. Once you have your morning protein, you earned it.

• Keep hard-boiled eggs in the fridge. Boil em up for the week and put them back in the container. Label each with an "H"
• Cottage cheese is a great quick breakfast. Top with nuts, mandarin oranges (rinsed of syrup), chives, or seasoning.
• Leftover chicken, turkey, or meat counts. Breakfast does not have to look like breakfast.

Take at least a 10-minute walk

Take at least one intentional 10-minute walk.

This is the movement point. It is not about becoming an athlete. It is about interrupting the sedentary day.

This point can be checked as soon as the walk is done.

• Ten minutes continuous walking counts.
• Car needs to warm up? Let it warm up while you walk.
• A neighborhood loop counts. Time it once so you know it counts.
• Do it early if possible so the point is already secured.

No sugar

No sugar for the day.

The overall goal is to change our tastes and realize how much sugar we eat without thinking. By giving up sugar even fake sugars and instead get our sweets naturally from fruit, over time things will start to actually taste too sweet, and we'll prefer less sugar in things.

Any type of sugar counts. White, brown, powdered, glucose, syrups. Even "fake" sugars and sugar substitutes count! Do not check this point until you are sure you are done for the day. If you choose sugar, that point is gone, but the rest of the day is not ruined.

• Keep fruit like apples, oranges, and unsweetened applesauce on hand.
• Fresh fruit is preferred. Little mandarin orange cups are ok, but you must rinse off the "lightly sweetened" syrup they are stored in before eating.
• READ LABELS!! Corporations put sugars in everything. Salad dressings and condiments especially.
• A lost sugar point is data, not failure.

No flour

No wheat flour, rice flour, corn flour, or any other grain flour for the day, with one breakfast exception: one standard slice of bread, toast, or French toast.

Flour is often the automatic base of a meal: bread, buns, tortillas, pasta, crackers, and chips. Flour-based foods are digested quickly, raising blood sugar and prompting an insulin response. Cutting them out encourages us to build meals around protein, vegetables, fruit, and other less processed foods instead.

The Breakfast Exception: You may have one standard slice of bread, toast, or French toast (without sweetener) at breakfast only without losing the point, and it must be accompanied by protein. A second slice, or any other grain flour later in the day, loses the flour point. Wheat flour, rice flour, and corn flour all count. Do not check this point until you are sure you are done for the day.

• French toast counts only when it is made with one standard slice of bread.
• Syrup, powdered sugar, or sweetened batter affects the separate sugar point.
• Bagels, muffins, croissants, pastries, pancakes, tortillas, and sandwiches are not part of the breakfast exception.
• Gluten-free does not automatically mean flour-free. Rice-flour crackers, corn tortillas, and other foods made with grain flour still count.
• Use bowls instead of wraps.
• Use lettuce instead of tortillas or buns.
• Nut flours are ok. Almond flour, seed flour.
• Read labels if you buy substitute crackers -- they may hide sugar.
• Don't sweat it: Trace flour used as a thickener in soups or gravies, or occasional croutons in a salad or soup do not lose you the point.

No fried foods or bacon

No fried food or bacon for the day.

Fried food is often a quick impulse choice, so this point creates a pause before ordering or snacking. Bacon is included because it is processed meat and is strongly associated with serious long-term health risks.

Do not check this point until you are sure you are done for the day.

• Pick grilled, roasted, baked, or sautéed instead.
• Bacon in any form, even bacon bits, count.
• Decide before you are standing at the counter.
• If you spend the fried point, keep the rest of the points in play.

Stop eating by 7 PM

Stop eating by 7 PM.

This is the anchor rule. Eating late is the quickest way to gain weight. This rule does 2 things: 1) It creates a clean end to the food day and prevents late-night snacking. 2) It ensures that you wake up hungry, ready for a good breakfast.

If you eat after 7 PM, you do not get this point. Log it before midnight or it does not count.

• Eat dinner early enough that you are not fighting the clock.
• Set your phone's alarm to go off at 7 pm. When it rings, if you are eating, that's it. Swallow what's in your mouth and you're done.
• Close the kitchen mentally after 7.
• Shop for and keep delicious herbal teas on hand. Think of just "switching to tea" rather than giving up eating.
• Remember, you want to wake up hungry.