What are the two “new projects” Max embarks upon and why?

From the text:

Max began to excercise to fight the Fuhrer.

What he needed was a series of new projects. The first was exercise. He started with push-ups, lying stomach- down on the cool basement floor, then hoisting himself up.

The second... painting over the pages of Mein Kampf, so he could write, The Word Shaker.

Another of Max’s projects was the remainder of Mein Kampf. Each page was gently stripped from the book and laid out on the floor to receive a coat of paint. It was then hung up to dry and replaced between the front and back covers.