I decided to do this 30 Day Challenge as a test of my own dedication and work ethic. The Rock famously wakes up at 4am and does these workouts before most people get out of bed, then has a full day of being the highest-grossing actor in the world. I wanted to see if I could find that level of discipline.

I didn’t do this for the physical effects. I have no desire to be huge like The Rock. Even if I did, 30 days of eating and training isn’t going to get you there. This is more like a training for a triathlon. The motivation is the challenge, getting in shape is a benefit.

As I was looking for a photo of The Rock for a blog post, I stumbled on this photo.

Presented with no source or explanation.

Found on Google and presented here with no source or explanation.

I have no idea where this photo came from, or when it was taken. Google tells me he got his tribal tattoo around 2003, so it would be before that. But this seems a bit more inline with what I think would be a good goal for a normal, desk-dwelling dad such as myself. So maybe when people ask “are you trying to look like The Rock?” my answer will be “yes, but at some unspecified time in the early 2000s”. (If anyone knows when or where this image is from, tweet at me).

The Challenge Heard ‘Round the World

Two days ago AskMen wrote up an article about the challenge, which was then syndicated on Business Insider. It absolutely exploded in popularity. Yesterday alone this website hit a record of 32,000 views, and the traffic came from all around the world.

It was exciting and motivating to get tweets and emails of encouragement from Hong Kong, Malaysia, Brazil, and many others. There should be no doubt that The Rock is loved around the world.

So Why Cod?

The most common questions I get are about the cod. It’s definitely the craziest piece of this challenge that jumps out at people. Interestingly, I also get a lot of questions about good alternatives for cod. Either for price, availability, or sustainability reasons, cod can be hard to get. This does make me question why people are asking. Are they just planning to add some to their diet based on this? Or are some people planning to try this eating and training challenge themselves? If anyone is serious about giving it a go, get in touch.

To answer the question of why cod, it’s because cod has a high protein to calorie ratio, and has low levels of fat. If you’re looking for an alternative, just google “Cod nutrition” and look at the nutritional information. Then google another fish you’re considering, and see how it compares. Most white fish, like pollack or whiting, are fairly close and make good alternatives.

Daily Stats

I forgot to start my Fitbit during weights again, finally setting it about 20-30 minutes in. Need to stop doing that.

stats-day25