Basic Training, as with many of the best things in life, is implemented through the use of a very basic spreadsheet.
Using such a spreadsheet can change your life. Your life may then revert back to how it was before, but you can reinstitute another spreadsheet as often as is needed (and for some, like me, that might just be forever).
And you don’t have to take it from me, I have one reverberating testimonial:
“Thanks for telling me about your spreadsheet. I made one too. It was really helpful” (paraphrase)
— Angie
What does Basic Training include?
Basic Training lasts 4 weeks.
It focuses on preparing the individual to be stronger, healthier, and more resilient so that we can get to the superhero stuff down the road.
It follows the Jenny Goodguts principle: Do More Good. In a nutshell that means it does not focus on things you should not do or on what you might be doing that is ‘bad’ for you. It focuses on adding more good things to your life, on ways to spend time and energy that will support your vision of what you want to be instead of focusing on what you don’t want to be.
Basic Training is something that can (and probably should) be completely modified for any individual. I’m sharing the actions that are part of my own spreadsheet as an example but feel free to adjust in any way you like! I will provide more guidance on how to select Basic Training tasks in the future, but I’m in desperate need of it myself, as well as of some accountability, which public blogging provides, so I’m rolling it out barebones to start with.
Basic Training includes five aspects:
1) Nutrition/Energy
2) Movement/Strength
3) Clarity
4) Spirit/Soul
5) Rest/Restoration
For my purposes,
Spirit = What is bigger than me?
Soul = What am I?
The mechanics of the spreadsheet:
It is a printed piece of paper. There are a number of small daily actions listed. They are slotted into a timezone (breakfast, lunch, dinner, etc). The sheet is taped to the wall in my kitchen. At the assigned time of day, I look at the sheet and try to make sure all relevant tasks are complete.
Originally, this spreadsheet was mostly used to help me remember to take certain supplements, breathe before eating, consume cultured foods (more on this later) so it was a perfect system for those tasks. I (almost) didn’t miss checking a box for 8 weeks, and that is REALLY saying something for me.
The tasks in Basic Training don’t fit as easily into the original time slots, and are not quite as simple to complete, so I am experimenting with a new spreadsheet and will modify (Jenny Goodguts Basic Training Program, take 2) once I see how these different types of activities work within this system. Instead of waiting until it is perfect, I’m sharing as I go.