40s 4 40 is a series of challenges that I have set myself, starting in 2020…
I turned 39 on the 6th November 2019 and so am now in my 40th year.
In recognition of that and in lieu of any resolutions, I have devised the following set of 40-themed challenges:
- Donate £40 to 40 charities
- Run over 40km (i.e. complete my first actual marathon)
- Run 10km in 40 minutes
- Freedive 40m depth (one breath – AIDA Constant Weight CWT)
- Freedive 40m length (one breath – AIDA Dynamic Without Fins DNF)
- Cycle 40km in one hour
- Do 40 push ups in 1 minute
- Complete an Ironman 70.3 in 4 hours 40 (*something*) minutes
- Climb over 40,000 feet (including my 3rd and 4th of the 7 highest summits in the World)
- Drink a ’40’
- Get ’40 winks’ more often
All of these challenges are stretch targets that I am not currently able to achieve.
The significance of the ‘4’ is two-fold. It relates to me summiting my 4th of the World’s 7 highest summits and also the timeliness of me achieving these targets for the time I am 40 years old.
I will record my current capabilities to provide a baseline and document the journey I go on in response to the above challenges, via this blog.
My aim is to demonstrate what you can achieve if you put your mind to it and that may be, just may be, life really will begin at 40… I’ll be ready for it!
“Life really does begin at forty. Up until then, you are just doing research.” – Carl G. Jung
Update (at almost half year 2021):
I originally challenged myself to write 40 separate posts on my blog covering my preparation for and progress against the original 12 challenges throughout 2020. However, over the course of 40s 4 40 the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the original list of 12 challenges grew as did the period of performance – both to a point where achieving 40 separate challenges may be possible while I am still 40!
Here is the final list of forty 40-themed challenges:
