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Wellness Wednesday for November 1, 2023

The Wednesday Wellness threads are meant to encourage users to ask for and provide advice and motivation to improve their lives. It isn't intended as a 'containment thread' and any content which could go here could instead be posted in its own thread. You could post:

  • Requests for advice and / or encouragement. On basically any topic and for any scale of problem.

  • Updates to let us know how you are doing. This provides valuable feedback on past advice / encouragement and will hopefully make people feel a little more motivated to follow through. If you want to be reminded to post your update, see the post titled 'update reminders', below.

  • Advice. This can be in response to a request for advice or just something that you think could be generally useful for many people here.

  • Encouragement. Probably best directed at specific users, but if you feel like just encouraging people in general I don't think anyone is going to object. I don't think I really need to say this, but just to be clear; encouragement should have a generally positive tone and not shame people (if people feel that shame might be an effective tool for motivating people, please discuss this so we can form a group consensus on how to use it rather than just trying it).

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Base building for my Alaskan journey is going...okay. Still disappointingly unfit; my 5-minute power is a puny 200 watts at a body weight of 70 kilos. I can deadlift 275 and squat 245, though, so I have that going for me. Plan to get a used bike trainer and a rear wheel for it so I can do 1-2 hour steady distance rides. Hiking up mountains, too, on weekends...that should help build base fitness as well. Shit is boring and requires discipline. Valuable life lessons here. Seems like any badass shit runs off of a long-ass logistics tail to support the teeth. Lots of unglamorous prep work and grinding away at either low intensity stuff like 45 minute slow runs at a turtle-like 15 minute mile pace or figuring out how to line ski mountaineering boots that are three sizes too large with insulation both inside and out so I don't get frostbite. I could be deluding myself here, but I feel like I'm becoming a better or at least more capable person as a result of this training process. It at least seems cool. This whole Alaska crap might be dumb as all hell, but at least I'll be a fit dumbass...

Hey if you're enjoying the journey, that’s great, most important thing. That’s one of your problems imo, you’re too focussed on the goal, whether it be in alaska or between the legs of a woman. Your other problem is that you have a completely distorted view of your chances, which makes a dangerous voyage that much more dangerous.

Your other problem is that you have a completely distorted view of your chances

Too optimistic about my survival chances, or too pessimistic? I think that my chances of being in a relationship with an average American woman are roughly equal to those of surviving the Hock.

Your chances of being in a relationship with an average american woman. But forget about that, it’s been discussed too much already, it’s just that I don’t trust your other evaluations as a result.

Is your plan still to parachute in the middle of alaska with just a knife? Is there any way I can convince you to adopt a less suicidal plan? You can perform a great feat without a great death risk. I feel like you’re going to splatter and it will be a millionth my fault because I didn’t suggest you build a cabin or do an iron man or something instead. I’m sure if we get our heads together we can find a better bucket list item for you to cross, one that isn't the last.

Is your plan still to parachute in the middle of alaska with just a knife?

No, it's to attempt a cross country trip across the Brooks Range with a shit ton of gear.

Still sounds suicidal, although I admittedly have no idea how realistic that is. Can you attempt a (series of) less ambitious treks first?