More than anything else, a challenge hinges on what you put in writing as you go. It begins with your goals, and it ends with writing down that last meal on the last night of your challenge!

You’ll need a journal, a durable and spiral bound type of document to put all this down. You’ll start with your vision, the overarching idea of what you hope to accomplish–something simple an broadly stated, like “Become muscular, get to optimum weight, and become a champion in 2008.” From that vision, youll move to specific goals, figures that are sufficiently detailed so that you’ll know if you made them. Goals should be difficult but clearly achievable. Examples: “Lose twenty pounds of fat; 4 inches off my waist; reduce cholesterol and blood pressure by 20 points; Bench press at least 200 pounds.” You don’t need all of these, but things like these.

Next, you’ll put down your current condition, measurements, weight, ability to lift, blood pressure, etc. Then, take your photos and put them in the front of your journal as well. They’ll keep you going when you’re tempted to quit!

Plan your entire 84 day challenge and reserve the times for the workouts. Look carefully at the calendar so you’re not blindsided by business trips or vacations or holidays as they come up.

Prepare your workouts, including specific exercises, each week. Do all your shopping and write out your menu and meal plans for that week every Sunday. check off each exercise session and meal as you do them, noting where you went right and went wrong. Carefully noting the starting and ending pounds of each exercise will save you lots of guesswork at your next workout. Every night, put down at least three things you hope to achieve the next day, doing the worst first.

Learn to do all this, and you increase your odds of finishing by about 10 times! Putting ideas on pencil and paper adds significant power to them, and they become a firm contract with  yourself. Rely only on your thoughts and hopes to guide you, and you’ll soon drift off into neverland. Written information is critical to your success, and your journal is your source for that.

Do I practice what I preach? You betcha! I have a journal in my car, in my gym, and at my bedside. I have done that for 7 years. It helped me a great deal during those years, and it helped make me a champion.

Give it a shot!