Men of AskMenOver30! In the interest of creating a deeper, more engaging, and more relevant community for all of us, we've implemented a recurring, Weekly Wednesday check-in thread.
- How are you doing this week?
- How are you feeling this week?
- How have things changed from last week (if at all)?
- Are you proud of anything you've done this week?
- Are you struggling with anything this week?
- Do you need advice or feedback on anything that's happening?
Feel free to share your wins, losses, and general progress. You can talk about anything from work and career, to personal projects, to personal development and family, to friendships and socialization, even dating.
Life is ongoing, and sometimes it's good to have a community around us that can reflect that. Hopefully this weekly check-in will serve as a good tool and outlet for those who need it.
You are encouraged not only to post, but to respond to posts by others. Support your fellow men in their trials and tribulations.
Please be respectful in your comments.
25 comments
Been mostly laying on the sofa for nearly 3 weeks bc i’m on vacation. It’s been a bit lonely, but i’m doing this by choice so it’s ok.
Its gonna be a difficult year.
Working out of town, living alone in a hotel, 5 hours away from wife and kids.
I can take a weekend off and go visit my family any time I want. But every weekend I don’t work is tons of overtime lost.
Im on day 3 so far and I plan on doing this until right before Christmas.
This week has been quite alright. Still on holiday but excited to go back to work tomorrow. However, I might need to take parental leave tomorrow if my son’s school closes due to the snowstorm in Sweden. But anyway, the overall feeling is quite good.
I’m really looking forward to returning to work because a prominent figure in my research field reached out and offered me the chance to be a co-investigator on a significant project. It’s a great feeling as a newly independent scientist, and I see his invitation as a nod to his recognition of my potential for collaboration.
I also have to start my diet again, the holiday has ruined it 🤣
Hit a 10/10/8/6 two plate bench yesterday getting close to my goal of four sets of ten at that weight feeling good should hopefully be within the next couple times
Mental health is on point.
Gym regime is on point.
Diet is 75% there; need to eliminate the bedtime snack attack.
Relationship with the Missus is still kinda distant, but she’s SUPER stressed at work.
Kids are good and healthy.
Mom & Dad are still spry, enjoying retirement.
Overall I’d say life is good!
Just got off Zoom with my therapist discussing my marriage & other topics. Recently read my brother’s screenplay & gave him feedback.
Took some steps financially that will allow to make some money moves in the near future.
Things are moving in the right direction this week. I got caught up in a corporate downsizing back in November. Being unemployed for the last 2 months has been tougher mentally than financially, though that’s also not so great.
Spent the holidays alone. Made a promise to myself that next year will be better.
Back in the gym. Adjusted my supplement stack a bit and changed my routine. Catching up on some reading and spending more time meditating. I’m ready for a complete overhaul of all things.
Today we all got a market adjustment $.75/hour increase effective beginning 2026. That sure is better than a kick in the dick! It’s separate from our annual merit increases. Any little bit of financial relief feels like a huge weight off my shoulders. So this week is looking better. I was feeling pretty bummed returning to work after a nice 13 day break. At least I’m earning a little more coin for my time now
I’m stoked.
Work is going well, even though we’re facing crazy obstacles right now.
Been improving my diet, sticking to my sobriety, spending more family time.
Just redid my fish tanks and cleaned up my office so I’m feeling more productive.
Weather should be leveling out soon, so I can get back on my paddleboard and do some cold weather fishing.
After a few hard years, our finances have started bouncing back. Got a good amount put away, and we’re feeling more empowered to take some time to rest, start diversifying a bit, exploring some passive income streams we previously didn’t have capacity to take on.
Family is doing alright – both our father’s are running into health issues, but that’s to be expected. Estates are in order, and we’re planning for the next phase as caregivers.
Friends are doing well. I’m working on shifting a few working relationships to personal relationships as part of my divestment from the hustle, and loving connecting with folks as friends vs. professional partners.
My goals this year are to get my body where I want it to be, join my union bargaining committee and get folks some well-deserved raises, and start building a plan for my spouse to leave their 9-5 so they can start up their business again.
As a gay couple with lots of queer family, the situation in our country has me feeling down. I try to pay less attention to the news and more attention towards my community – their needs don’t get met when I’m couchlocked and stressing. I worry about my spouse out walking around, and if they’re gonna get harassed if I’m not there. I worry about my aging lesbian mother, living in a dark, dark red zone where her pride flag got stolen off her porch and burnt in the street. I worry about my friends trans kiddo and what the next few years are gonna look like for them. Just focusing on pouring my love into folks, giving them their flowers while they’re here, and doing what I need to do to keep them safe.
Oh, and I gotta learn Japanese these year. My elderly Japanese grandmother is threatening me with a prolonged visit, and if I’m as poor a speaker this time as I was on her last visit I fear she’ll kill me. She gave me a stern lecture over zoom just last week.
Got the Christmas tree out of the house.
The grandson is having a sleepover, and has beaten me at chess.
Good news from the hospital as well. I must get a shitload of chocolate for my end of treatment visit.
I met a girl who was perfect for me on online dating in late November. I saw her and said “yep, she could be the one.” Holiday plans kept intervening so we’ve only been on two dates, but they’ve both gone great.
This Friday she’s inviting me to her place for Princess Bride and chill, wish me luck boys!
Struggling cause I am not really enjoying the time I spend with this girl I’ve been seeing for 6 weeks and I don’t want to waste anyone’s time. She’s super cute and sweet and so so nice but we just don’t have anything to talk about and I don’t know how to approach this.
This week hasn’t been bad so far. Had the Sunday scaries after being off for 2 weeks but I’m back in action at work and slowly getting back in rhythm. Created some boundaries with family back in 2025 that I’m hoping to continue on this year after having a very difficult 2 years of unemployment and depression. Slowly rebuilding back and hope to make more money and new friends this new year. Taking it one day at a time. Hope you’re having a great week my friends
Back to work after a long vacation. I generally like what I do, but I am trying to get further from execution and split 70/30 strategy work/execution.
I’m writing regularly again. And reading more than ever. I’m in generally the best shape I’ve been in, which is nice.
Relationships are fine with my two partners and I never feel a lack of support, but I do occasionally feel a difference in effort. That said, I am also not living with a chronic illness and my neurodivergence isn’t causing me much trouble.
But what bothers me is the US and geopolitical picture: I feel like a lot of what I’m working towards won’t matter if things in the US go bad enough, especially if immigration isn’t an open path. Plus, I wonder if that won’t matter as NATO/UN is currently at risk of dissolution, and China, Russia, and the US all look to get into an economic fistfight that might turn into a gunfight.
Not too bad. Actually picked up my guitar for a few minutes this week, that’s a bigger deal than it should be, but a move in the right direction. Remodeling forever.
Poor start to the year with a minor back injury. Which is flaring up an older back injury. Missing some days of work but we’re slow so I guess that’s alright .
But! I’m in a newer relationship after a back breakup last year and it is going quite well!
Not great. I got in an argument over a fucking Reddit comment last night and ended up breaking down crying. I’m just very insecure about who I am and what I want and don’t want out of life right now. The anhedonia is eating me alive
Fucking hate my job now that theyve added 70% more workload and responsibility and feel trapped evrrywhere.
Mixed but looking up.
I’ve started seeing this girl in her mid-20s. Apparently she’s had a crush on me for a long time (up to a year?) and I only picked up on it in December. Dates 1 and 2 were awesome, we’re going on date 3 soon. Boyfriend/girlfriend language was hinted the last time we hung out by her best friend. She’s great, has the same sense of humor and makes me feel alive, and I can definitely see it taking that trajectory – I just wanna make sure we’re not moving too fast.
Physically, I am the most fit I have ever been in my life. Unsolicited words used to describe me: strong, jacked, lean, hot. The girl I’m seeing leaked to me that her friend group thinks I’m really hot. I’ll take it. Had a free session with a personal trainer at a new gym, he was giving me his whole spiel until I easily did 12 of his “humble push ups”. Gonna pass on him.
Biggest change is money and career. Got laid off last June, have had one interview since July. Was hanging out in Mexico and Asia the last few years to save money fast. Post office has been hiring, said fuck it, and now I’ve got a few offers. Gonna take em to see if my industry (medical sciences) recovers. Got hit with a high maintenance bill for my car. Can take the financial hit, but seems like financial blows keep coming left and right.
Let’s see what January brings.
In a bad place currently, I’ve made a huge mistake and hid / lied about my cocaine use to my wife and mum for months after saying I’d stopped. Naturally it caught up with me this week to bite me on the arse, I’ve been found out and I’m now sleeping on the sofa. Naturally my wife is heartbroken and livid with me, I’ve agreed to change my bank account to a joint one so she can keep an eye on what I spend. I am however training for a marathon and getting out running everyday after work, get those endorphins running, I’m twelve days clean as of today and my legs ache so much but it’s for a good reason, I’ll be going to Poland in September to run my first long haul race. This week I’ll be putting in my application at work to go back to school, I want to move on from my current role to become a tree surveyor, it won’t be easy but things worth attaining often aren’t.
Weird day at work.
But PHEW I’m home. Tomorrow is another day.
Noticed something weird this week. When work is not going so well my marriage improves. Not sure what that’s about but I’ve been married for 5 years and the communication and intimacy has never been better.
Back to work after 10 days off. Still a lot of management away, so things have been quiet and I’m fine with that. No doubt things will pick up next week.
Am now five or six (I forget) weeks into a home workout routine. I’m out of condition after being hobbled by a supposedly minor foot injury, and my diabetes meds eat away at muscle mass, so finally told myself I needed to do something about it. Will I go to a gym? Eh, maybe. I am intimidated by the notion. But the three times a week is turning into a reliable habit and on occasion when I missed a day, I make it up the following day. While I’m not seeing improvements, wifey was watching last night and claims that she is seeing progress in a few places, so cool.
Snow shoveling is also a good workout as I’ve chosen to do it all by hand and leave the blower in the garage. That adds some solid exercise once or twice a week.
Swore off ice cream before Christmas and have stuck to it so far. I love that shit but my God does it not help me.
Landed a small photography gig for this weekend, so looking forward to that.
Local birdwatching group took notice of our yard this past weekend and is very keen for us to count the birds at our feeders, as we have a few uncommon birds overwintering and the birdwatchers reckon we’ve built up a bit of an oasis, so that’s nice.
Hey y’all, another week in the books. Last week did therapy, felt like another good session, and started my nine days off stint to get the year off right. It was bizarre – both he and my friend that is also a therapist asked when I was planning to start dating again – had to remind them I’m still not even divorced. Today my lawyer reached out to hers again noting they had all my info and needed hers if she was interested in settling. Not happy about the situation, still. Miss my other dogs and her a lot. But growing accustomed to the first year in fifteen I’ll have not known her love.
Yesterday I got my recessed lighting in to brighten up the bedroom, said fuck it and cut the holes without knowing if I could link up all the drops. Spent last night on a tear after having dinner with my mom and wired up almost all the holes, and then took the morning to get it all dressed in. After cleaning up the room of sheet rock and fiberglass dust, then cleaning myself off of the same (and suffering an allergy attack since I didn’t wear a mask), I can honestly say it’s a gamechanger. So much nicer up there and can have the lights set to turn on and off depending on my schedule. I was proud of my work today.
Back to work this week – had a nice rest over the holiday break and 2026 is the year where I pay more attention to my health and wellbeing.
Got a hair transplant at the end of December and am recovering well. Will restart gym lifting in a couple weeks and was prescribed a GLP-1 to lose weight as well and am trying to eat healthier. PCP visit next week and I already know I am worse off than last years visit but I’ll improve.
I’ve been paying more attention to my skin and applying retinol to reduce fine lines and wrinkles, as well as moisturizing in the morning and evening.
I also got SMILE surgery on my eyes recently so after 25 years I no longer have to worry about eyeglasses or contacts.
2026 is the year I invest in myself!