By Jackie Houchin

#Bloganuary is a month of blog prompts that WordPress uses to get us bloggers off to a good start in the new year.

#1 What are my biggest challenges?  I have three I designed for myself.

THE FIRST CHALLENGE, I began last year is walking miles.

22 of my Conqueror Challenge medals

I have two bone-on-bone knee joints that I won’t let keep me from being active.  I get annual hyrolonic gel shots in them in the spring, and take off from there.  In May I joined THE CONQUER CHALLENGES, an addictive group on Facebook that inspires people around the world to walk, run, bike, swim, row, etc. miles and miles VIRTUALLY to places and trails around the world. The phone app tracks your trip and inserts wonderful Goodle Earth photos as well as videos and special information. (You can also virtually plant trees or clean up the ocean with the challenges.)  The Facebook Conquer Community  is supportive and encouraging.

I began the challenges with the 75 mile London challenge, then went on to walk over 1,400 miles in Europe, the US, South America, India, Asia, and Africa in 2023 (virtually of course). The colorful real metal medals you earn each time you finish are drop-dead gorgeous and spur you on to one challenge after another.

The shortest is Angkor Wat (Cambodia) 20 miles; the longest is the Pacific Crest Trail on the west coast of the US, and is 2,485.5 miles! Most people get their miles by biking the long ones, but I have a friend who “walked” it. It took her two years.

THE SECOND CHALLENGE I began today (January 1, 2024) is reading my Bible through in 366 days (It’s leap year).  It averages out to be about 3 1/4 chapters each day (total 1,189 chapters).

The reading plan I’m using is at TheBibleRecap and takes me through all the 66 books in the Bible in chronological order. You can print out the daily plan or sign up for the plan on TheYouVersionBible app and listen to the daily reading in the Bible version you choose.

After reading, Tara Lee Cobble gives a “recap” of what you’ve read, explaining a few things in a 5-6 minute podcast. You can also join the Bible KNEEcap podcast where she prays briefly from the day’s reading.  It’s fantastic!  Come join me.  It’s not too late!

THE THIRD CHALLENGE also began today. I started at the suggestion/idea of another Conquer Challenge community member.

As well as doing several virtual exercise challenges, she is using the long, 2,280.3 mile Route 66 Challenge (Chicago to So-Calif.) to make herself drink the required 8 glasses of water every day for health purposes.  She adds one mile to her challenge for each glass she drinks.  At 8 glasses/miles per day, she said it will take about 42 weeks.  Soooooo… I’m doing it too.  (HEY, I REALLY, really, want that medal!!  And I will never walk it!).

BTW, you can used the challenges for anything you want! (One woman used a 150-mile challenge to knit 150 newborn caps for a maturnity hospital!. One cap = one mile.

And so I begin………………