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

Last night we were out having Mexican food when La Cucaracha started playing in the background. Todd decided he was going to ask our waitress what the song was about. I laughed at him a little. Umm. I am pretty sure it is about a cockroach. Kind of obvious, right? He asked anyway and sure enough, the waitress said the song doesn’t make much sense but is about a cockroach that can’t walk because it lost its strongest legs. See? Like I said.

Wrong. Todd wasn’t satisfied so he looked it up on his cell phone. It turns out that the song was originally about revolution. It was made popular with different lyrics during different wars over centuries. It eventually became like “On Top Of Old Smokey” with everyone making up their own lyrics. There is a version where “La Cucaracha” is a prostitute following around Mexican war heroes. One where it is a train that breaks down or an argument that falls apart. One about a guy that can’t travel because he can’t find marijuana. And many others with lyrics like the ones Todd found last night. My personal favorite. “When a man falls in love with a woman and she doesn’t love him back it is like a bald man finding a comb in the street.”  He he.

Anyway, it got me thinking. I wonder how often I approach a familiar situation as though I already know about it and end up missing an opportunity to learn something.

“It is hard to fill a cup which is already full.”  – Recent movie quote

(10 points if you can guess what movie without looking it up.)

The other day I was listening to the news and heard a story about a 13 year old girl who had been brutally murdered by her boyfriend of only three months. Ron Zapolo introduced the mother and her name sounded familiar. I looked up and there on the television was the former next door neighbor of my parents. The woman was a friend of my mother’s and had helped me find and buy my condo. I remember her daughter as a little girl. Everyday when I pulled into the driveway she would run up to the car and ask if I could stay outside and play. My most vivid memory was of when she came to the door pretending to sell pizzas. Hahaha. She used to call my dad Mr Bob and it was so cute that everyone on his block still call him that to this day.

So I looked up the news story to find out what the heck happened. The murder happened more than 2 years ago! How can it be that something so terrible could happen to someone I once knew without me somehow finding out about it before now? It makes me wonder what else has happened in the lives of former friends and acquaintances. My heart goes out to everyone who has lost someone unexpectedly.

Today my mom would have turned 61 years old. Happy Birthday, Mom.

Nothing like inviting people over to get you motivated to do those house projects you have been putting off. Todd worked his butt off. We got the crown molding and the lighting done just in time. Somehow the Super Bowl ends up being our deadline for basement projects. Unfortunately everyone got sick this year and couldn’t make it over. My parents still made it but otherwise we had a virtual Super Bowl party over Skype. Since the Super Bowl is sometimes a blowout, we make bets to keep it interesting either way. This year we made up a mini version of Fantasy Football. In teams of two we each picked one quarterback, a running back, a wide receiver, a kicker, and a defense. Whatever points they scored, we scored and then we added a few extras like who will win the coin toss and who will score the first touchdown. Competitive television watching.

After 13 nights in a row of coughing fits that kept me up all night I finally had a good night sleep. I have been trying to sleep propped up because when I lay down I keep choking. I keep thinking I am recovering from this cold and then a sleepless night puts me right back under. Not getting any sleep has wreaked havoc on my mental and physical well being. The mistake I made was that since I couldn’t do much else, all I did was work work work. But resting your mind is just as important for your health as resting your body. And when this cold is gone for good I plan to do more of both.

Both of my cats have a disease where their body attacks their teeth enamel and eats them from the inside out. I guess it is incredibly painful. Buddy had a couple extracted yesterday and came home all doped up. He kept squinting at me with only one eye open and stumbling into the walls like an old drunk. I think he is okay now but still pretty miserable.

I still managed to make it to volleyball. My team won the first three games and were battling it out in the fourth with time running out when a guy on the other side protested a call. It was a real downer in the middle of what was otherwise a great match to be forced to listen to the scientific reason why the way the sand looks proves a hit was in. After a bit of frustration we replayed the point but went on to lose the game when time ran out. But it felt more like losing an argument than losing a game. Too bad. They are one of the more fun teams to compete against. It reminded me, though, that you can’t let the actions of others take the wind out of your sails.

Sorry to disappear for a bit. I guess I just needed a little break. Some time to reflect on last year. Here is a very quick update on what’s been going on.

Winter Training Camp – Challenging. I got to work my butt off for 4 days. As a bonus I learned how to roll around on lacrosse balls to basically give myself the benefits of a deep tissue massage. I also learned that the reservoir of energy runs deeper than I  thought. I am really glad I went.

Other CrossFit Training – In the past couple months I have been injured perpetually and sick for 2 weeks. I am finally starting to feel healthy again though.

Body-For-Life Winner – Not me. Totally disappointed but also relieved that the waiting is finally over and still proud of what I accomplished last year. Maybe I’ll get brave and post my photos sometime.

No Sugar Challenge – I think I survived. I will probably never do that again.
House – Today a guy is coming over to hang up our crown molding in the basement.
Work – Love my new project but it looks like I may only be able to work on it part time.
Date Night – Still doing date night every Thursday. So many restaurants so little time….

Day 1 started with a warmup and a short workout followed by an hour and a half of lifting. They served us a very healthy lunch and then we were on our own for a couple hours before round 2. In the afternoon we had a bit longer race and then spent an hour on the floor working the soreness out of our muscles with rollers and lacrosse balls.

It is very inspiring to workout with 25 people with this kind of work ethic. Most of them come 6 days a week and bust their butts. The quote on their website today pretty much sums up their philosophy.

“There is no strong performance without a little fanaticism in the performer.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

I think that probably holds true at work and at home too. People who do well at work really dedicate themselves sometimes beyond the understanding of others. Fixing up your home or keeping it clean and organized requires a certain amount of dedication. I have realized lately that even the relationships I have in my life can be amazing with a conscious and consistent effort to improve and enjoy them.