Summer Reset: 30 Days, 30 Actions

We’re almost halfway through 2018. History is accelerating. New advances, technology, scientific findings, and social changes are occurring faster than ever before. There’s never any time like the present, but these days it feels like the present is slipping away at an exponential rate. This is no time to be resting on your laurels, biding your time, or waiting to see what happens. It’s time to act. It’s time to make the changes you’ve been mulling over, the ones you know in your heart are the right moves to make.

To help you on your way, I’ve put together a 30-day action plan for the month of June. No one has to follow this to the letter, or even at all, but use it as a template or inspiration. Wake up on June 12 swelling with energy and unsure how to direct it? Check out the action plan. Feeling a bit lazy on June 19? See what the action plan recommends; it may resonate.

Let’s get right to it:

June 1st: Plan your month. Set a goal or two, aiming as high as you realistically can attain.

June 2nd: Track what you eat, how much you move, how long you sit or stand, what you do in the gym, how much you procrastinate or waste time, how much time you spend in flow or being productive. Get specific, get precise—it’s just one day, and you can handle it. Get a good baseline, so you know what you’re working with. Then try to improve on it every day forward.

June 3rd: Try the fitness or movement pursuit you’ve been thinking about for a long time. That thing you know you should be doing, like foam rolling at night or doing a light mobility session in the morning, but keep putting off. Just do it. Feels good, right?

June 4th: Take a cold shower.

June 5th: Wake up a half hour earlier than usual, if necessary, and do some hill sprints before the weather heats up. If no hills, flat sprints. If flat sprints hurt, try an alternative.

June 6th: Reflect on your approach to competition. Who are you competing against? Who should you be competing against? Consider that it might be a better idea to compete against your former self, because besting your former self is a reliable path to self-improvement.

June 7th: Take three walks. One in the morning, one at lunchtime, and one after dinner.

June 8th: Meditate, if you’ve never tried it before. If you have and it doesn’t work for you, try an alternative method for reaching a similar headspace. My favorite way as of late is just sitting quietly at the beach, watching the waves go in and out across the horizon.

June 9th: Have a big dinner party. Make something delicious (and Primal), pour some good wine, have some good laughs.

June 10th: Don’t just go to the farmer’s market. Make friends with your favorite farmer’s market vendors.

June 11th: Pickle something. It’s really easier than you think to make your own fermented food. Mix 50 grams salt with a liter of quality water, pour over garlic/hot peppers/shallots/pretty much anything you can stuff in a jar until submerged, place something on top to keep everything submerged (a roof of carrots wedged against the sides of the jar works well), lightly cover, and wait for the bubbles to start. When you like the taste, you’re done and can refrigerate the jar.

June 12th: Plan a camping trip for later during the month. Get your family and/or friends together, throw your gear in the car, and make a weekend of it somewhere nice and secluded. Leave electronics behind if you can, or at least limit artificial light after dark (red LED on the headlamp is a must when camping).

June 13th: Wake up and write down ten ideas. About anything at all. They don’t even have to be good. They just have to be on paper.

June 14th: Go for a PR in something. Pick a physical activity, and try to beat your personal best.

June 15th: Fast (if your personal context permits). Men, aim for the full 24 hours. Women, shorter will probably work better—somewhere in the realm of 12-16 hours (less if you’ve never tried).

June 16th: Grill something over open flame. At least one animal and one plant.

June 17th: Crawl everywhere you go in your house (and office, if you’re game). Use different techniques, go at different speeds. Throw in a few push-ups while you’re down there.

June 18th: Try a new recipe. Or just cook something new freestyle, using no recipe at all.

June 20th: Read for two hours. Books, not blogs or social media feeds (present blog excluded).

June 21st: Try to assemble the least expensive, most nutritious day of meals you can.

June 22nd: Have a glass of good wine with someone close to you. Friend, spouse, child (if of age).

June 23rd: Meal prep for the week ahead. Take an hour and get all the basics you need for the rest of the week ready to go. Roast veggies, start something in the Instant Pot, boil some eggs, prep Big Ass Salad makings. What you can cook ahead of time, cook ahead of time.

June 24th: Climb a tree. Be safe, just not too safe. Try to get the blood pumping.

June 25th: If you have any nagging health concerns you’ve been worrying about, make an appointment with a medical professional to get them checked out. Eating, exercising, and living well can transform our health, but we’re not invincible.

June 26th: Dance. Preferably with someone watched (and joining).

June 27th: Dream big. What’s your biggest, most ultimate dream that still has a chance of happening? Write it down, and figure out what you have to do to make it a reality.

June 28th: Forage for something in your yard, neighborhood, local park, or forest. Edible plants are everywhere.

June 29th: Grill some fruit in cast iron over open flame. The best fruit of the year is in season—peaches, cherries, nectarines, berries of all kinds—and yet most people don’t know that you can grill them over open flame and improve the flavor. Top with unsweetened whipped cream (you don’t need the sugar).

June 30th: Show gratitude for the awesome month you just experienced.

I’ll also have more on June’s staff-led 21-Day Challenge next week, so stay tuned. Have a great end to the week, everybody. Thanks for stopping by.

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