Inspired

I came back from Regionals pretty inspired. I saw some seriously amazing athletic performances and attitude last weekend. So I decided to hit it hard this week and try to get in top shape so I can make it on the team next year.

Here's what I didn't do this week:

• I didn't eat the cake sitting out all week at work. On Monday, it was a huge sheet cake. Then it sat in the fridge, decreasing as the week progressed. I did not have any cake.
• I didn't have any chocolate-covered espresso bean/almonds/whatever they were at a theatre meeting on Tuesday. I was working out right after, and although they looked delicious, I did not snack on them.
• I did not eat the $3 lunch I asked about at the espresso stand near work. She said that she'd have biscuits & gravy and baked potatoes. Even though it was cold out and it sounded warm and comforting and cheap, I did not buy the $3 lunch.
• I did not work out 5 days in a row, even though I wanted to.
• I did not take an ice bath after that awful lunge workout, although I probably should have.
• I did not go to the new frozen yogurt place over by Crossfit .... because it's not open yet.

Here's what I did do this week:

• I tried my hardest on Monday. Not many women can get ring dips, but I'm close. I also really worked at getting all the toes to bar.
• I started the 100 day GHD sit-up challenge and push-up challenge. I'm pretty confident about the push-up challenge. I don't know how far I'll make it with the GHDs. I don't really want to mess around with those. I'll be lucky if I make it to day 30.
• But I did do 81 AbMat sit-ups in 2 minutes.
• I rounded my back on my 185lb. and 195lb. deadlifts. I know I need to work on these.
• I kicked butt on this short AMRAP with a sprint and increasing squats and double unders.
• I did 4 hard days of working out (I'm including tomorrow's because I always show up). It hurts to sit and stand today and I think tomorrow will be really, really difficult.
• I bought a sandwich for lunch today. I'm sorry. I like bread sometimes. I'm not perfect!

All around not bad, but not Games athlete material. I'm working on it.

Goals:

• Work on lifting form. I'm strong enough to lift more weight. I'm just scared.
• Keep an eating log for a week. I don't like being that honest when it comes to food. I eat a lot - and it's not all good. I'd like to weigh in the 120s and I'm close. Real close. I need to be more mindful of my eating.
• Recovery - take it seriously! This hurts!

Moves to work on (and consistently work on them a couple times a week):

Ring dips

Handstand push-ups

24" box jumps

GHD sit-ups

Yep, the Rocky theme is playing in my head right now. Too bad it hurts to move.

Committed

"Robin's on this new workout thing...I don't get it."

I recently heard this from someone I love and trust. I started thinking about how I'm approaching all of this. There are certain times in life where we commit. We question it, but we do it.

• When you start a new job or decide to go back to school, you commit. It becomes part of your life. You show up and you do the work.
• When you start a new relationship, and it actually works, you commit.This person becomes an important part of your life and you make time for them.
• When you decide to watch LOST, you don't start by watching a show in the middle of Season 4. You start from the beginning and you watch it all the way through. You read the blogs. You try to figure everything out. You commit.
• When you start something where you see a positive mental and physical change, like CrossFit, you commit. You schedule your workouts and you show up. You try as hard as you can. Maybe you even dial in the nutrition. You try to get better. You make it part of your life.

As with anything you commit to, CrossFit isn't easy. There will be days when you don't want to go, just like work. There will be days when you wonder if you're doing the right thing, like in a relationship. There will be days when CrossFit makes you angry, like when you realize that the producers of LOST are not going to tell the backstory of the character you think is the most important character on the show, Libby! But you stick with it and it pays off. You trust it, but continue to question it. It's OK to question the important things in our lives. And to people who say they don't have time to commit to fitness, do you honestly think I have time? I work 50+ hours a week. I make time because it keeps me sane. It's OK to make time for yourself. I found this blog about Primal Living, and I'm not going to link to it yet because I'm not quite sure about it. But Josh and I started talking about how we feel today, our rest day, and after having a 5-day workout week, I feel pretty good. I'm not sore today. I worked hard this past week. I'm all right. I think if my plane crashed on some mysterious island, I might be all right. I think most people would want to be able to climb a tree or attack a wild boar, or really do anything that John Locke would do (at least in the first season) and I think I would be OK. I wouldn't be like Claire. I wouldn't be the weak link in the group.You see all the characters on that poster? Yeah, we'll see what they do for the final season. It's coming. (Must make sure it's on Wednesdays and not Thursdays) Anyway, I did have a 5 day workout week. Lots of sit-ups, too many lunges, some frustration, but I did it. I need to work on my running, as it's becoming more and more of a problem. I'm too slow. I really need to work on it. So here's a picture of me looking like I'm fast, but I'm not. And this is probably preaching to the choir, but everyone needs to watch Food Inc. I know people don't want to think about where their food comes from, but if we don't start thinking about it, nothing will change.