We’re halfway through the year already. Damn, where’d the time go? Fast, man, really fast. So where are we at now? Looking back on my predictions for 2014, I’d say I am doing alright. Regarding momentum, I wrote:

“I plan on taking this momentum with me into the new year. No fucking around, just consistent execution every. single. day. I really like where my head is at these days, and am in a very good place spiritually, physically, and emotionally as well. Just like 2013, I expect the first half of 2014 to be very different from the second half. There are some amazing things in technology that I am expecting in early 2014 that I am getting excited for that will have a large impact on my productivity and career for the rest of the year.”

So far, so good. I’ve worked hard consistently. Spanish, programming, strength training, elliptical work, jiu jitsu, reading. Bam, bam, double bam. For technology, I’ve been all over Meteor. It’s the one. I won’t be switching to anything else anytime soon. I’ve also been working with Macaw a tad, although to be honest it has been disappointing and buggy, and a little bit of Famo.us – also a little bit buggy. However, there is no denying the enormous potential of these technologies to dramatically improve my workflow, and I will be following along closely. I wrote about these before.

So now that we are in the second half of the year, I predicted that it would be very different from the first half. I no longer think that will be the case. Rather than a sharp contrast between the first and second half, I’m noticing more of a slow transition. That’s ok, slow and steady wins the race. Or something.

My health goals in 2014 were just to get stronger. But as I upped my weight, I noticed my recovery was taking much longer. And then I started doing a lot of elliptical and jiu jitsu, and I was feeling crushed. So instead I switched out 531 for deadlifts and squats and replaced it with CAT. It’s more volume and poundage, but I find recovery manageable and power endurance improvements. I’m still sticking with 531 for overhead press and bench as I am still seeing gains for both. I’ve worked hard on ohp and bench and feel like I am no longer wimpy in those lifts, although my upper body strength is still pretty sucky. I’ve had this weird, naggy, weak feeling in my arms that has been bothering me for months that isn’t helping, either.

I cut my hair. It’s the first time I cut it in over 2 years. Last time I cut it was when I shaved my head prior to heading to Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos in May of 2012. Yesterday I cut it all off, got 9 ponytails out of it, and donated it to Angel Hair for Kids. Don’t ask why I grew out my hair. I don’t know. Seriously, I never thought about it. And then suddenly, 2 years later here we are. Weird, I know. I’m weird, sue me. I’ll probably never grow my hair out that long ever again. First off, it’s just a major pain in the ass to deal with. Second, I shed a lot. It’s disgusting. And third, there was this period of a good 8-10 months where I just looked ridiculous. Absolutely ludicrous, so bad that even I was ashamed to be in public with myself. Thanks to anybody who hung out with me during that time, you are all brave souls and deserve some sort of badge.

So there you have it. Not many big surprises for me, although there were a number of hiccups that bogged me down more than they should have considering I was expecting them. All in all though, I think this year has been going well so far. I expect come December things will be different, but through a slow and gradual change rather than immediate and sudden. I’m looking forward to it. I hope your year has been going the way you hoped, just because you’re awesome and cool for reading this whole thing.