Yesterday at CrossFit we did an experiment. We ran one mile. Then we spent time visualizing running another mile. And then we actually ran another mile. The goal was to focus positive energy towards better performance. It is easy to defeat yourself with negative thinking before you start so why shouldn’t the opposite be true? My first mile took 9 minutes. My second took 7:25. There are lots of reasons. The main one is that I tried harder. But the fact is that I only tried harder because I first decided to. Before the first mile I was thinking about how tired I was and how much more work we left had to do. Before the second mile I totally forgot about my aching legs, the workout planned for later, the steep hill climb. I was only thinking about running as fast as I could. Not hard to imagine how the second mile was so much faster. Doing that regularly seems like something that could make a big difference with minimal effort. Totally worth a try this week.

Day: 8
Weigh-in: 139.5

Day: 7
Weigh-in: 139.5

Back under 140. Yes! Just need to stay consistent to cut out that last 5 or so.

My secondary fitness goal of getting a muscle up this month is well under way. The plan is to focus on gaining a little more strength in my arms. So far that is being taken care of by the workouts at MBS CrossFit. This week I have done 170 kipping pull ups, 80 push ups, 50 ring dips, and lifted almost 15,000 pounds over my head. On Tuesday my arms were so sore I could barely lift them up. Yesterday I went past soreness into total failure. Today I don’t even know anymore. We are going again in a couple hours though so I guess we’ll find out.

One thing I haven’t done in a month or so is to actually attempt a muscle up. That might eventually be a good idea. While it is fun preparing to reach a goal it would be easy to get stuck in that state for another 6 months. Have to remember to keep trying them regularly no matter how frustrating it is certain to be.

Day: 6
Weigh-in: 140.5

I was thinking about my own personal goals in my own little life this morning when Todd sent me videos of the earthquake in Japan. The first one was a views from a helicopter of the waters completely taking over a town. The second included what it is like in people’s homes and at work. In grocery stores and at school. There is one of an oil refinery on fire. They are even having issues at their nuclear power plants which could turn out to be an even worse problem. Terrifying. I cannot imagine what those poor people are going through. My heart goes out to them. I think I really need to get some kind of training in disaster recovery. It bothers me that I can’t do anything to help.

Day: 5
Weigh-in: 140.5

I updated WordPress yesterday and my theme was hosed. It is no longer compatible. Not a bad thing, I guess. That old theme served me well for over a year but I suppose it is time for a change. I am using this for now until I have a chance to look around for others. I may try a few different ones over the next couple weeks and solicit some feedback.

Day: 4
Weigh-in: 141

The first 5 pounds is already almost gone. That is pretty normal when you have been eating as much as I was. The first few days is the easy part. The hard part is continuing to press on when the weight stops melting off so easily and my resolve starts to fade. I am hoping that not depriving myself will make it easier. In fact, my friends in Paleo would probably be appalled with what I have been eating on this ‘diet’ so far. Let’s find out. Here is what I ate yesterday:

Leftover pizza is not part of a health food diet. But I have another goal in mind to make due with what I have available. And what I happen to have available at the moment is leftover pizza from that party. Luckily it is homemade so it isn’t overly greasy or covered in 2 inches of cheese and pepperoni or anything. And once it is gone I can replace it with something higher in protein. Time to defrost the chili!

Only Day 4 and I already feel sooo much better. My energy level is way up. Too much actually. I need an outlet. Time to go for a run!

Day: 3
Weigh-in: 141.5

Yesterday I decided to go for a walk. Every couple months since she was nine my cousin Andrea (now 20) and I have gotten together to catch up on life. Our idea for last night was to go to Chautauqua and walk the loop. Up the hill, across the mesa, and back down. Nice place for a chat. Then I saw the weather. 27 degrees. Icy. Likely to get even colder after work. All day I wondered if it would be better to stay inside. But where is the adventure in that? When I was a kid I couldn’t WAIT to get outside regardless of the weather. So we bundled up and went anyway.

It was beautiful out there. A little frost on the trees and barely snowing. Dressed properly, we weren’t even cold. It made me wonder why I don’t spend just as much time outside in the winter as I do in the summer. When we got to the end of the mesa we were enjoying ourselves so much that we extended our trip by walking part way up the mountain. If it weren’t for a bit of hunger and pending darkness we probably would have stayed out there longer. I am now resolved to not let the weather keep me from going outside on a regular basis. For a walk, for a run, for a picnic in the park. Why not?

Day: 2
Current weight: 142.5

As I suspected a few of the extra pounds were from all the pizza and drinks Saturday night. One day on track left me about 2 pounds per week to get rid of. The real goal for me this time though is to change some habits. I would like to succeed without being militant and when I get there I would like to celebrate reaching my goal without eating a pan of brownies for dinner this time around.

Saturday night was the annual reunion I have with my college buddies at my place. Love those girls! (Sadly we didn’t get pics of the boys. They were down in the man cave.)There is a theme every year. In our 10+ years of reunions we have worn everything from pajamas to prom dresses. This time we made pizzas so we were pretty casual.

The night always starts with a bit of catching up, food, and drinks.But after a few drinks it usually takes a turn for the ridiculous. I promise you do not want to know what Katy was doing. “You had to be there” material.Every team I was ever on felt obligated to take the same picture.Soccer, volleyball, softball, whatever. I never imagined I would still be doing this in my 30s in my own living room.Why you ask? Because we still can.

Ever so slowly since last summer I have been backsliding on the nutrition. After a bunch of pizza, drinks, and dessert last night I woke up this morning nearly 10 pounds heavier than I was last summer. Yikes. I suppose the key is to catch yourself on the backslide before it turns into a full on downward spiral right? Can only start with today and go forward.

So I have a new goal. To shed that off before my birthday. That gives me exactly one month including today. Secondarily, of all the fitness goals I had last year only one escaped me completely. Getting a muscle up. Every time I have tried I have gotten extremely close but it has been that way since last August. Not very encouraging. This is the month, though. I can feel it.

Weight as of this morning: 145
Goal by April 2nd: 135

Current muscle ups: 0
Goal by April 2nd: 1