Personal challenges sharpen the mind while strengthening resolve. Here are nine ways to challenge yourself today to build fortitude and character.

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What is a personal challenge?

I haven’t eaten in over 24 hours. Not because I haven’t been around some solid options for delicious and sustainable choices of sustenance. This is actually challenge I take on by choice.

That’s where the concept of personal challenges comes into play.

We live in a world where we can get our movies instantly streamed, our food delivered in 30 minutes or less and hold a world of information in the palm of our hand. It’s important that you step back from some of these silver-spoon first-world luxuries to challenge yourself from time to time.

A personal challenge is the idea of adding something not so awesome into your already awesome life through challenges like fasting, biking to work or cutting off electronics for a period of time.

It helps us all to better understand how to go without the many privileges we are used to enjoying by building fortitude and character.

If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you.

– Fred DeVito

Through personal challenges, you tend to better appreciate the many things you already have in your on-demand lifestyle.

It’s not unlike the idea of Lent. A religious observance that takes place in the 40 days leading up to Easter. Lent is symbolic of the 40 days leading up to the crucifixion and subsequent resurrection of Jesus and his 40 days alone in the desert being tempted by Satan.

It’s utilized mainly by the Christian faith as a time of reflection and typically involves fasting from food and/or festivities.

Many denominations observe different takes on the observance of this period, but the concept is shared and followers are encouraged to celebrate Lent through a personal challenge.

Most people opt to give things up for Lent in the form of vices like chocolate, alcohol, porn, electronics or anything that perhaps allows for the individual to step away and reflect on the actual relationship with that vice in order to better themselves after the period of Lent comes to a close.

Unfortunately, so many of us celebrate Lent and then forget about this idea of personally challenging and pushing our beliefs until the next year comes around and it’s time to give something up again.

So how do you create some ongoing personal challenges for yourself to strength resolve and build character? 

Let’s get into it.

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Personal Challenges Improve Our Gratitude for What We Already Have

If you’re reading this post right now, you’re likely doing so from your phone or computer. Which means you’re also in top 30-40 percent of the world in the ability to stream internet to your own device.

Freeing ourselves from some of these resources and opportunities is liberating and an eye-opening experience.

Its intent is not solely just because we can, but rather as a chance to get to know ourselves a little better through the process.

Personal Challenges allow for the individual to reflect on the many benefits that he or she actually enjoys throughout the day.

In our on-demand society, it’s easy to forget just how easy we have it. That way it is so important to practice stepping away to look back at the wonderful things we actually do have in our benefit to get a bigger picture of the journey.

A little more gratitude and appreciation for the things we do have can go along way in helping achieve the many things we want and strive to receive.

I struggle with this myself.

I’m constantly looking ahead to the future to try and figure out how to better myself through personal health, professional wealth or through the chance to enjoy a happy and fulfilled life.

But only through full appreciation and contentment for what I do have will I be able to understand just how awesome and happy my life truly is right now.

This is where the idea of personal challenges can help us all hit that reset button.

That’s why I haven’t eaten in 24 hours.  

The concept of intermittent fasting has many benefits from a health standpoint, including, but not limited to:

• Reduction of insulin resistance
• Increased fat burning
• Reduction of stress and inflammation
• Improved cellular repair
• Improved appetite and blood sugar control

But, to be perfectly honest, those benefits are really minuscule.

The real reason for engaging in an IF lifestyle is that it makes dieting much easier by shortening your feeding window.

For instance: Let’s say you’ve only got 1,500 calories as a daily target in order to lose weight. That’s not a lot of food. And when you space 1,500 calories over the course of a full day of eating three meals, it comes out to about 500 calories per meal.

Again, not a lot of food.

But, if you condense your eating window to eat hours––which is really just skipping breakfast essentially––you’ll be spreading 1,500 calories over two meals. That’s 750 calories per meal. Same amount of daily calories. You’re still in a caloric deficit (the key to ultimate fat loss), but the meals are bigger and allow for more wiggle room. And more enjoyment.

It’s one tool I like to keep in my toolbox for my one-on-one coaching clients.

Personal challenges make difficult obstacles in life feel easier

Sure, practicing an extended period of not eating does end up benefiting me in the long run. That doesn’t mean that I’m not fucking hungry while this is going on.

I’m voluntarily invoking a hardship on myself that will make me a better person for it on the other side. Instead of complaining about not having something to eat and giving in to hunger pangs, I focus on creative works and being productive.

In fact, the days that I fast are some of my most productive days of the week. I wouldn’t know this unless I took action, ripped off the band aid and jumped into the deep end of the pool.

Now, if I’m ever in a situation when a meal must be skipped for one reason or another (late flight, long day of work, etc.), it never hits me hard because I practice going 20 to 24 hours without food a few times a month.

I’m happy to say that I’ve been doing this for several years; before the cool kids were all over the TV morning shows promoting the idea of not eating for extended periods of time.

Types of personal challenges

When you’re ready to challenge yourself, it doesn’t have to be something as rigid as fasting for 40 days and 40 nights or living like a hermit without electricity for two weeks.

As I always point out, the key is for small tweaks to your current lifestyle and then go from there.

Maybe you’ll enjoy the idea of personally challenging yourself so much that you’ll up the intensity level and make it all a part of your ongoing lifestyle.

Here are a few ideas to help get started.

Intermittent Fasting

Without getting into too many of the principles behind it, the idea is simplistic in nature: don’t eat food. Drink plenty of fluids, like black coffee, tea and lots of water, throughout the day and then enjoy a regular meal when you have completed your fast and go on with your day. Seriously.

Don’t overthink the details. You can start by just skipping breakfast tomorrow and breaking your “fast” at lunch. Or just commit to eating breakfast a little bit later in the day. Don’t overcompensate for the calories you missed at breakfast, just get on with your day from there.

Cold showers

There are some health benefits to this one, too. But, considering how many people don’t have the luxury of clean running water, let alone hot water, this one seems like a nice way to awaken the senses as a personal challenge.

Commit to more movement

All movement matters. Seriously. Just a few minutes per day is enough to enjoy the benefits of physical activity. It doesn’t have to be a 45-minute spin class. If you’ve been struggling to get started with a workout program, commit to a month of more movement and simply get up and walk a little bit each day.

Set a calendar appointment in your phone. Make it unbreakable. Walk for 20 minutes. Or butt this new habit with another routine, like grabbing a morning coffee and committing to walk around the block while you sip on your java.

Or step out for lunch and opt to walk to the destination instead of hopping in the car. If you’re ready to take this personal challenge to the next level, you can challenge yourself with my metabolic workouts in the Ultimate Guide to Fat Loss.  

Learn a new language

A few years ago, I spent about two wonderful weeks touring the beautiful lands of Italy with Angela. It was amazing. Leading up to that trip, I set out to learn the language of the natives.

For the most part, I knew just enough Italian to get myself into trouble with the locals and find myself about midway through beginner-level conversations. It was a blast. Learning the little bit that I knew of the language took only 15 minutes per day for a few months.

It’s a great way to expand the horizons and learn a bit more about a different culture. It doesn’t have to be about traveling to faraway lands, either. Hell, you could just commit to learning Dothraki. It’s still a personal challenge to develop a new skill that will sharpen your brain and expand the mind.

Walk or Bike to work

Think about the extra calories burned here if you could use your own motor to power the commute to the office a few times a week. It also saves on gas and cuts down on the wear and tear of your automobile.

Face a big fear, and do it consistently for a week or two

Maybe you’ve got a fear of making sales calls or marketing yourself. This is the opportunity to bust this fear once and for all. Commit to one call per day for the next week. That’s it.

Develop an elevator pitch-style script for yourself and then take five minutes each day to put yourself out there and make a sales or marketing call.

Imagine the number of leads you’d create for you and your business if you faced this kind of fear head on.

Connect outside of social media

In our digital world of instant gratification, we’ve become addicted to social media and have shunned the idea of actually being social in real life.

Break out of your shell, put the phone down for a few minutes per day and commit to calling one person on your contact list. Yes, calling. Or even meeting in person for lunch or coffee.

Digital Detox

Restrict the access to all of your screens and technology for an extended period of time. Cutting back on all of that can work wonders for your eyes and your brain and even the neck––for those that are in that constant craned neck position while checking smartphone updates for texts and Instagram.

Shop only ONE time this week

How often do you load up on groceries for the week ahead, get about halfway through the week and then realize that you need more food for whatever upcoming meals, so you scramble to the grocery store to pick up a few things?

Don’t do that.

Challenge yourself to make use of all the food that is in your pantry and refrigerator that could be salvaged to create a worthwhile meal that doesn’t require extra trips to and from the supermarket.

You’ll be surprised how creative you get when you force yourself to be more resourceful through this type of personal challenge. Added benefit: savings to your checking account.

Here’s my challenge for you: Start implementing a personal challenge today

Figure out a few ways in which you can implement a personal challenge in your day-to-day lifestyle and get to work.

As with any new habit any new goal, the key to victory is to start small.

Find one thing you’d like to do today to challenge yourself and commit to it one time this week and build from there to a solid routine.

Over time, you’ll notice your skills sharpening like a fine Valyrian steel blade ready to dice up some White Walkers.

Featured Image by fxxu on Pixabay

Let’s work together to find a personal challenge that works for you … 

I’m here to help you out. 

If you have any questions, reach out. I answer all of my emails at pete [at] petecataldo [.] com … Hit me up with the subject line “Personal Challenges” and I’ll answer any questions you have about make this work for you.

Or you can hit me up anytime on the socialz on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

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