Wednesday, June 24, 2015

And the truth comes out....

Self Improvement Check! 

It's that time again-gotta call BS on myself!....

Do you ever sit back and realize you're just going through the motions? As if to be on auto pilot day after day, just doing what you gotta do, but not putting too much effort into it? Well, that's where I have been for the past several weeks. I can come up with about a dozen excuses for it, but I know better than that by now! I'm speaking primarily for my nutrition and exercise, because everything/everyone else is well taken care of. Hence the lack of proper food (calorie) intake and consistency in training. I don't have struggles with eating poorly as far as "junk" food goes, my issue with food is not getting enough. Truth is, I have days where I may only eat 600 calories! Eeeeek! I can't believe I'm confessing this! I know how terrible it is and I don't have one single good reason for it. I get busy with task, after task and don't stop long enough to sit down and eat! Due to my serious neglect of calories I lack the energy for a great workout. So I end up just going through the motions, demanding my body to use sources I haven't provided it with to sustain the kind of workout I am wanting to get in for the day. That right there is a big NO-NO! 

I'm sharing these nasty little details with you for a couple of reasons. First and foremost, something's gotta give, it's time for me to make changes. And if I speak up about it, I can no longer ignore it.  Second reason is to shed light on the other side of food struggles. I'll bet some people reading this may be saying to themselves "wish I had that problem" but the truth is...I am no more healthier than someone overweight. It is bad, bad, bad for our bodies to not get enough food or get too much food! This is why there is a recommended calorie intake for all sizes, all athlete, and specifically for both men and woman. Our bodies absolutely need and desire fuel! 

Now that I have opened up about it, I have to follow through with making the  necessary changes. Starting with logging my food again EVERY DAY. Setting an alarm on my phone every 2 hours reminding myself to take a break and eat. I will get my act together and prep my food every week. I may even reach out and ask for some accountability. 

 As you can see, knowing all of this information and constantly coaching it doesn't necessarily mean I (the professional) automatically does it 100% of time without the same struggles others may have.  It does however mean that I have no excuse for not applying thus knowledge and doing something about it. 

This self improvement doesn't start Monday, it starts tomorrow! #BOOM

Wednesday, June 17, 2015

GGTD!

This Saturday is Garage Gym Throwdown, and the first group competition I have ever been a part of! I am crazy excited for this comp, and thrilled to be slangin' sweat through with 3 amazing athletes! I would be lying if I said I wasn't at least a little nervous, life has gotten in the way of how I would normally like to prepaire for a tough competition. I have recently been exhausting myself with home improvements, kiddos on summer break and to top it off a little sprain in my right wrist 4 days before the event! I could easily tap out of this competition, and my teammates would understand, but that's pretty much the last thing I want to. The "old" athlete in me would have in a heartbeat, there was no way I was ever going walk into a competition as a coach and not be 100% confident and ready! But, the new athlete in me has learned a few things in the past several months-I have gone back to basics, re-learned my form, and made some serious self improvements on what this sport is all about! People say all the time how much they love CrossFit for accepting all athletes, especially those who finish last. Why? Because they finished it and didn't give up. I'm certainly not aiming to finish last, but I won't be beating myself up (old me) or my teammates up if we do. We are going into this competition just like any other one, it's about testing your limits, pushing yourself a little more beyond your comfort zone, and doing it surrounded by same minded, passionate people!! Its going to be incredibly fun, hard, and probably exhausting, but I have no doubt it will also be extremely rewarding! And that's what counts. 

I want to wish all the competitors the best of luck this Saturday!! 

Tight butts and sweaty nuts are comin' in HOT!

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

A Huge Gift from Her Little Boy.

Four weeks ago, I received a phone call from a very close friend of mine asking for my help with fitness and nutrition. We have had many conversations in the past surrounding this same subjects, but never once had she really asked for my help. You see, this dear friend of mine has devoted 100% of herself into her sobriety for the past nine years, as a result she put on significant body weight. She has made a few attempts in the past to make some healthy changes, and she would give it all she could for about two weeks before going back to her old habits. It wasn't until her 11 year old son, who also battles with body weight asked her if they could both work on losing weight, and start exercising! This was the "wake up call" and an incredible gift from her son.

Being that I love these two precious people with all of my heart, I jumped at the opportunity to help them in any way I could. We started with a few workout ideas and hit the nutrition at full speed, 100% devotion, and nothing "dirty"! Imagine two people who's every meal came from a restaurants or fast food, completely changing their habit to eating ONLY from their own kitchen!! Mother and son prepping their food together on Sunday's and packing it all up for the week!! I get choked up just thinking about it, and have never felt so proud!!

They have both lost more pounds than they thought they would in such a short amount of time. They have more energy than they ever had before, they can physically see the changes in their bodies, and most importantly they are happy! Both are on the road to success, they are proving to themselves and each other that they can do it!

Here is the BEST part....yesterday I got a text that read 'I was having a tough day, pulled up to the drive through of Burger King, when the lady came to the window I said " I'm sorry, I don't need anything, thank you" and drove like hell out of there!' 

YES! YES! YES!! HUGE VICTORY!!

The moral of the story is, today might not be your day, or the day after that, but believe me, one day in the future a little spark inside of you will ignite and you will feel that fire so strongly that nothing will get in your way!