Community. Integrity. Fortitude.

48 days of breaking vices and building virtues

The Goal:

Band together with a team of your choosing for inspiration, challenge, and accountability. On November 14th we begin emptying our lives of nonsense and join together to better understand and improve upon our core values of community, integrity, and fortitude as we apply these values to our fitness and our health. This FREE challenge, once complete, is designed to reward you with freedom that comes through disciplined teamwork and accountability. As we well know, “nothing easy is worth learning, or worth celebrating.”- Musashi

The Challenge:

Fortitude is the ethical virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. The challenges below apply to each team and were chosen to strengthen your resolve to resist temptations and overcome obstacles that arise during the 48 days. Here’s how you will earn “bragging rights”:

1. Practice makes perfect. 48 day Burpee Challenge- You know the one, one burpee day one, two on day two, three on day three, etc., we love you all…Each member does 1,2,3, etc. If at any point a day is missed by anyone, your entire team’s burpee count will jump to the last day (48 reps) and stay there until the end of our challenge. Example, one teammate forgets on day 7. Starting on day 8, each member will complete 48 reps per day! Burpees may be done in or out of the gym.
2. Build Community: Build your team from Citadel members that you know and who share your commitment to excellence. If you are new to our tribe, ask a coach and we will help guide you to a group. Your team will meet once a week at minimum. These meet-ups are an opportunity to give a self-report for accountability, receive encouragement, and get to know one another. This could mean working out in the same class once a week, meeting for coffee, or using the gym as a meet up, etc.
3. Give your time- find someone in need, get organized as a group, and help them. Clean up an elderly neighbor’s yard, donate a few hours to a local organization, etc. Charity is the first of the virtues! Once done, report to us on the Challenge FB page for accountability.
4. Break a Vice- choose a vice (or two) to give-up and submit it to the challenge FB page. Make it public to us all and then let your group keep you accountable. Suggestions: no alcohol; no desserts & sweets; no eating between meals; no soda or sweetened drinks; no television or movies (without permission of group); no televised sports (without permission of group); computer for school/work ONLY; no major material purchases (beyond toiletries, etc., without permission of group); no staying up late, get seven hours of sleep each night, etc. This would be for the group and/or individual.
5. Review our new Fitness Levels and Milestones – test into one of the levels and get underway on an objective and measurable journey towards a better you.

The Accountability:

Groups should be a minimum of 4 with a maximum of 6 people. We suggest accountability through a group message, a Facebook group, or anything that allows daily communication. Teams are challenged to meet in person once per week for 30 minutes, 10 minutes minimum.

The Points system:

1. 1 Point each day for good nutrition. (Either met your goal (avoided your chosen vice) or you didn’t. Let’s keep it simple.
2. 1 Point for Supplements. Please take your supplements: Fish oil, Vitamin D, Magnesium, BCAAs, etc., whatever you normally take, continue to take them. They are good for you, especially the above mentioned.
3. 2 Point for Mobilizing or ROMWOD. The more swole and flexy you are, the fitter you will be and the less chance you will have of injury.
4. 1 Point for each class you attend. We realize that you cannot always make 5 classes a week, but we also know that exercise plays a huge role in raising your metabolism and overall health. This goes for CrossFit classes or Weightlifting classes, and there is no penalty for not working out.
5. 1 Point for each weekly group meeting. This could mean working out in the same class once a week, meeting for coffee, or using the gym as a meet up.

Why you SHOULD NOT do this challenge:

1. You enjoy being unhappy, incapable, ineffective; if you are content to live a life indistinguishable from death …
2. Health and fitness is something you do on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, or something you do to get someone off your back…
3. You are content believing where you are on your fitness journey is good enough. Being “healthy” is sufficient and actually getting “fit” doesn’t interest you.
4. You’re inclined not to challenge yourself or other people (i.e. be hurtful) to personal excellence (i.e. be offensive) or hold someone accountable to what is good and truthful (i.e. be intolerant)…

Why you SHOULD do this challenge:

1. Reclaim control and discover greater personal integrity, focus, increased self-worth, dramatic improvement in relationship with family and friends and dramatic improvement in self-giving.
2. Gain more satisfaction in your work and play.
3. Be a part of a small clan, willing to make a difference, something sorely lacking (to our detriment) today.
4. Save money and improve productivity: not be preoccupied with destructive and time-wasting habits.