15 Days: Part 15

September 23rd to October 7th 2025.

I’d forgotten how quickly these come around…

• Fitness
• Blue Prince gets nominated
• Testing
• A key conversation
• Blackpool Expo FOMO

Fitness: Last time, I wrote that I’d share more on my fitness goals and what I’ve done. Very simply, I identified three things I felt I needed to reduce, and two that I believe will help me gain momentum. Caffeine, chocolate and alcohol were highlighted as things I’d like to remove entirely, or enjoy on an infrequent basis, while adding walking each day plus some easy exercise to help gain some strength and cardio, and either reading or writing more often. I spend way too much time in front of screens and I have what I’d consider to be a small library of unread books that need reading, and a pile of notebooks that need writing in.

I previously described my starting point as being: ‘Where I had once been able to run a couple of miles each day without too much trouble, sleeping soundly at night, and waking the following morning with more energy than ever before, now I ache, can barely jog 100 yards, and struggle lifting anything heavier than a large box of books.’

So, since 14th July, I’ve kept track of whether I’ve had any of the three (caffeine, chocolate, alcohol) each day, and the longest streak without each, in order to highlight where I am weakest and which needs more attention than others.

To break this down a little, it’s been 86 days between 14th July and 7th October.

Out of 86 days:

• I’ve had caffeine 86/86 days (I already knew this would be the hardest habit to crack, and likely to be faced last)

• I’ve had chocolate (I am ashamed to write this…) 45/86 days

• I’ve had alcohol 17/86 days (this is easy to give up and 6 of those days were on a cruise so, you know, holiday!

Percentage-wise:

• Caffeine at 100%

• Chocolate at 52.33%

• Alcohol at 19.77%

Longest streak without:

• Caffeine at zero days

• Chocolate at 6 days (this was very recent; within this last 15 Days, in fact)

• Alcohol at 12 days (streaks are usually between 6 and 10 days)

Alcohol was a quick win, which is a good way for me to get some momentum. Personally, I still think it’s more than I would like but it’s a pint or two, or a glass of wine, nothing more than that, and these numbers will decrease.

Chocolate is my downfall but I did have a breakthrough recently. Back in 2008 I think, maybe 2009, I got a bit chunkier than I felt comfortable with and so I decided to start running again. I’ve never done regular long-distance running; give me a couple of miles a day and I’m happy with that. The thing is, my local Somerfield was just down the road and most days I would find myself lazily drifting to their confectionary aisle and the Jaffa Cakes, therefore negating any exercise I did. One day, fed up with my lack of discipline (something I had always prided myself in), I found myself standing in Somerfield staring at a box of Jaffa Cakes for about ten minutes, like some kind of weird ‘Chubby Welshman’ meets ‘Cake-not-Biscuit’ stand-off. It must have looked a bit odd. What was actually happening was I was battling with myself and the choice between carrying on as I had been, or switching mindset and aiming for something I felt was better i.e. becoming fitter and healthier. Like a lot of things, it can take great effort to make a change that improves your life, and for years afterwards, I would think about that stand-off and remember walking away from the store, Jaffa Cakes left on the shelf. For a long time, I didn’t look back. I got fitter and healthier, and I felt amazing.

Since then, and especially the last ten years, I’ve gradually become lazier and lazier, and older, and more comfortable, and happy, and all those good things I am fortunate and grateful for, but my fitness has suffered and I’ve hated every moment where I’ve ached and slowed down. I’ve also guzzled embarrassing amounts of chocolate and cake, with no real motivation to change. And for years, I’ve been secretly chasing that same determination I found in Somerfield, without any success.

But something happened recently, and I found that I genuinely want to take responsibility for my health. I am getting older and I want to live a long life where I’m not aching or in pain and I’ll try my best to make my later years easier by looking after myself now. There are no guarantees; who knows what is around the corner, but I don’t intend to reach those later years struggling to jog two miles or lift a box of books. And because of this, I now have a reason, whereas before I did not, and that counts for much.

The turning point and the beginning of that 6 day no chocolate streak was Somerfield Showdown Part 2 but instead of Somerfield, it was my local Co-op, and instead of Jaffa Cakes, it was a raisin and biscuit Yorkie Duo and a Kit Kat Chunky…and standing there, looking at it all, I was transported back to 2008, that determination flooding back. I looked again at the shelves, and instead of rows of shiny chocolate wrappers, I saw clogged arteries, extra weight, bouts of fatigue, and weakness. I saw what I didn’t want for me, and so I left.

That 6-day streak ended with chocolate cake but this time I had earned it. Having walked for an hour, then done heavy lifting in the garden as I single-handedly moved a shed, and shovelled and carried buckets of stone chippings across the lawn to be lain around its edge, this time it was different. It was a reward for hard work and breaking a habit. Progress.

That 6-day streak record will be broken again and I’ll look forward to sharing it here. I’ll get that 52.33% down. I’ve no doubt about it.

As for exercise, this has been slow but it’s building up steadily. One of my favourite things to do is pick an exercise, like press-ups, and do as many as I can on day 1. It’s usually 5 or 6. On day 2, I’ll do the same and add one. And I’ll keep doing that every day, giving myself a break every so often whenever I get to around 15 or more. It’s low numbers of repetition but it works. My current exercise is a dumbbell shoulder press. When I used to go to the gym regularly, this was the one I hated doing but it was also one of the best for correcting my posture. This time I started doing 5 reps, and my right arm in particular was a bit wobbly. Now I’m doing 10 reps and 5 is easy. I’ve already noticed less slouching and my upper body strength returning. There’s a long way to go but in the space of a week I’ve gone from 5 to 10 reps and have done 5+6+7+8+9+10 = 45 reps. Small steps but they all add up. I’ll add press-ups again soon, along with leg raises. Then over time, I’ll add more.

The other exercise I’ve added is walking, with the intention that by the end of 2025 I’ll be jogging or running again. I’ve always loved running. Again, just short distances but it clears my mind of nonsense and keeps me fresh. I need it back in my life, and I will get there. Currently I’m walking to work and back, with occasional lunchtime walks and then in the evenings. Jogging is close though; I feel quite excited to see how I get on. It’s been a long time.

I’ve also challenged myself to lose a pound of weight per week until I get to the weight I’m happiest at. So far, I’ve lost 6 pounds with 14 to go. It’ll be a good weight for me, and one that is achieved in a steady and healthy way. I’m not after crash course diets; I’m after regular, lifetime changes that last.

As for the reading and writing, it’s going OK. I recently cleared through a lot books that have been double-stacked on shelves that appeared to be on the verge of breaking, and the study I use to do my testing is now also a place to read or write. Even now, writing this is enjoyable. Yes, in front of a screen but I have quiet and I have to actually think about what I write. It feels good. As for the book I’m reading, it’s called The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne, and although it’s taken 50-odd pages to get into, I am enjoying it.

Blue Prince gets nominated: To anyone paying attention, and I did touch on this a little in Part 7, Blue Prince has been nominated in the Golden Joystick Awards for Best Indie Game and Best Storytelling, and this is hugely and richly deserved. I am not in the least bit surprised.

Voting is open right now at https://www.gamesradar.com/goldenjoystickawards/ so please take a look and vote for who you think should win across the categories.

Testing: This has been a little quieter lately. UrbX Warriors continues to be developed and with each demo drop I can see it grow. It’s quite interesting to see where it was and where it is now, and I continue to learn valuable insights into game development from Stoo and Tony. We’ve also cleared up a rather annoying bug where the game would randomly crash for what appeared to be no particular reason at all. With just a small hint towards what it may be, now that save points are in the game, that one has been unravelled and I believe it was to do with code in the background that should never have worked but somehow did during gameplay. That’s now been fixed, and the game runs smoother than ever!

Another test, in preparation for the upcoming Steam Next Fest starting 13th October 2025, is the Nighthawks demo. Developed by The Curiosity Engine and published by Wadjet Eye Games, this is a beautiful, narrative-driven game that I am very intrigued by. It plays well, has strongly-developed characters and the storyline is interesting. I’m particularly taken with the artwork; I cannot get enough of it. I’m enjoying the test very much so far, and I recommend you check it out. The link to the demo is here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1221950/Nighthawks/

A key conversation: I recently had the fortune to chat with someone in the game dev community who has a lot of experience and knowledge. I’m not saying who but it was hugely useful to me and highlighted a few things about myself, through my own self-awareness, that I was quite frustrated with.

I think I’m flailing around too many ideas for what is ahead of me, and I also believe I sound a little bit whiny. I could hear it during the conversation, and I couldn’t understand why I sounded like this. It is a source of great frustration to me that despite my life experience and the things I have done, I still find myself putting obstacles in front of me or appearing to whine like a child, and giving excuses not to push through and go for what I want.

Without delving too deep into why and what, I’ve pinpointed what I actually need, and that’s to be part of a group of like-minded people, who offer encouragement and support and a space to allow people to fail without judgement. I’m also looking for some kind of mentor who I can bounce ideas off and learn from. I mean, to be honest, that’s just a life-want, and nothing I haven’t always wanted but life isn’t always like that, and I have to keep moving forward. And to make things worse, I think I do have these in place so…what on earth am I even writing about here?

This is a rather vague section to leave in and I nearly cut it from this blog but I think it shows a little of what I mean. Sometimes I have to write out loud to find an answer, and this looks to be exactly one of those occasions. I’ll come back to this in future, hopefully with something a little more focused and succinct.

Blackpool Expo FOMO: Oh my goodness, I regret not going to this event! Loads of people to meet and catch-up with and many games to play, plus some interesting talks. I didn’t go because I had to concentrate on a few things at home, and Storm Amy would have made travel extremely difficult, but that’s the first time I’ve said to myself ‘I wish I’d known about this sooner’ because this EXPO looked great!

I’ll be reducing my events next year but this one will certainly be considered for 2026. I’ve also noticed that there are far more gaming events around the UK than I had realised. I’ll have been to seven by the end of this year but there are so many more. The scene is certainly thriving, and I think that is wonderful.

And that’s it for this time. Not too much in this 15 Days compared to Part 14 but enough to keep me busy, and some important points on health, fitness, and those wonderful nominations for Blue Prince.

I’ll be back again in 15 Days!

As always, until next time, stay safe, and thank you for reading.

Paul.