Solo Leveling in real life

Every fitness plan I have ever made had the same flaw: it didn't know me. It didn't know that my Tuesday had just fallen apart. So I built something that does.

It writes my day while I sleep, messages me on Discord, and hands out XP when I do what it asks. It runs on a Raspberry Pi in my living room. I have used it for a week, and for the first time, something is chasing me instead of the other way round.

The month that always ends

I have been trying to keep fit for years. Home workouts, then badminton and cycling, then badminton and the gym. I changed my food, my workouts, my meal prep. Nothing lasted more than a few weeks.

My favourite book, Atomic Habits, says to make the habit easy to reach: if you want to drink more water, put a filled bottle on every table. It worked for a few days. Then I was busy, or I forgot, or I was just lazy. Workouts and diets work for a month at best, then life happens and I am back at square one. Every. Single. Time.

Then I remembered I am an anime fan

In Solo Leveling, a mysterious System hands the hero daily quests. Do them and you level up. Ignore them and there is a penalty. I thought: that is exactly what I need.

My first try was a fixed weekly schedule. It failed, because a static plan can't adapt, and I still forgot.

So I did what any nerd does after the wave of AI agents. I built one. Not a chatbot I have to remember to open, but a Game Master that comes to me.

Enter the Game Master

Here is the whole loop on one page:

1. What it knows
   The weatherRain changes the workout

   My scheduleBusy days get lighter plans

   The last few daysWhat I did, what I skipped
2. While I sleep
   The Game Master writes my dayMeals, water, supplements, workout, a calm evening, bedtime
3. During the day
   A quest card pops up on DiscordAt the right time, with a deadline and two buttons: Done and Skip
4. What happens next
   DoneI earn XP. Enough XP and a level-up card appears

   Skipped, or time runs outThe quest is marked skipped and the System turns up the pressure
5. When life gets in the way
   A photo of my dinnerIt estimates the calories and adjusts the rest of my day

   I am sickThe day becomes a rest day

   Travelling or busyOne command each
6. Every Thursday
   The weekly shopping listBuilt around the week, and my wife too

   I upload the receiptIt compares what I bought and adjusts

↺ Whatever happens today feeds into tomorrow's plan

What it knowsGame MasterDiscordMeOutcome

What a quest looks like

Just like in Solo Leveling, the Game Master gives me small, concrete tasks. Drink 400 ml of water. Do 10 push-ups. Each one comes with a time frame, and if I miss it, the task is marked as skipped.

No streaks like all those apps to feel guilty about, only pure results.

When life gets in the way

This is the part a fixed plan could never do. If I cook something other than what it suggested, I send a photo of my dinner. It estimates the calories, then adjusts the rest of my day to match. If I tell it I am sick, it turns my day into a rest day. Travelling or busy today? One command, and the plan bends around it.

Every Thursday it also builds my shopping list for the weekend, taking my wife into account. Then I upload the digital receipt, and it compares what I bought with what it planned.

The part I still can't get over

It runs on a tiny Raspberry Pi at home, and no one else holds my data. It needs no API keys, and the whole thing is built and run on the same machine.

I have only just started, about a week in, so I can't tell you yet whether it works. It could even be a placebo effect. Only time will tell.

More soon. I'll report back on how high I level up and what changes I see in myself. Follow this series and subscribe so you don't miss the next update.