RESOLUTIONS

RESOlUTION = A firm decision to do or not to do something.

HOPE = A feeling of expectation or desire for a certain thing to happen.

I’m not the biggest fan of new year resolutions, to me they are cheap.  Or at least the majority of people make them cheap (me not to be excluded).  I sit back and listen to this resolution or that, but even while the words are coming out of the mouth there is either a tone or look that tells you there is no hope in truly sticking to that resolution.  It shouldnt be a new year resolution we should call it a January resolution!  The definition of resolution has lost its true meaning, we have mixed it up with hope.

So to not disappoint this year I will make a new year resolution (I didn’t make one last year)!  My resolution is to stop hoping for what I want and to start earning what I want.  I think that is worthy of a firm decision.

photo: http://www.1000threadsblog.com/

Headed NORTH!

I’m headed to Nova Scotia!

Found out last night that I will be heading to Nova Scotia in place of my boss Wednesday Morning.  The flights are terribly long with lots of stops but I’ve never been and I’m pretty excited.  I will post on my instagram (dirthillphoto) and twitter (@fitnessclyde) as much as I can and hope to have some amazing posts when I get back on Monday.  I’m looking to eat clean with lots of fresh seafood and keep travel snacks down. I feel I’ve made progress and don’t want to ruin it right before a progress report on Monday…..

Wish me luck!

Muddin Is How I Do

Talking to my physical therapist last Friday we discussed the up coming Tough Mudder challenge that I had signed up for months before my accident.  Should I run Tough Mudder or not?  He looked at me like I was slightly crazy and I was wondering the same thing in my head.  Later that night I was still conflicted as the first of two couples running the event with LO and I arrived at our house.  We had a primal dinner and catching up it was great, but I still couldn’t make up my mind if I should run.

Like the Hulk or not…..Results Edition

I’m back from the holiday weekend(I missed you too) but that’s not to say I haven’t been working on my fitness plan.  Work has been crazy (didn’t get home till after midnight on Wednesday) the past couple days, really make it weeks.

Over the weekend I watched the new movie by Mike Birbiglia, Sleep Walk With Me. An interesting thing struck me while watching…… You are more limited by your mind than your body.  In the movie Mike has a sleep walking disorder and in one of his episodes jumps through a second story window thinking he needed to escape a missile attack, yeah I know you thought you had problems.  He recants it as if he was the Hulk flying through the window landing on the ground just to get up and keep going.  Mike jumped through a second story window and kept going! Why? Because his mind told him he could……

How have you limited yourself because you told yourself you couldn’t?

I originally was going to post results on Fridays but it’s not working out the best trying to get it recorded before I need to run out the door for work in the morning so I decided it was better to move recording to Sunday and release the results on Mondays (or Tuesday if it’s the week of labor day).

So without further delay…….

Caliper Results (in millimeters)

Chest: 28  (2 weeks ago = 26)

Abdominal: 29  (2 weeks ago = 28)

Thigh: 24  (2 weeks ago = 26)

Calculation: 23.95% (2 weeks ago = 23.69%)

Body measurements (in inches)

Arm: 14  (2 weeks ago = 14.75)

Chest: 44.5  (2 weeks ago = 45)

Waist: 38  (2 weeks ago = 39)

Thigh: 25.75  (2 weeks ago = 26)

Weight: 232.2  (2 weeks ago = 229.4)

Not what I was hoping for but what I was willing to accept.  These first two weeks have been hard to set the routine, my body has been tried and sore and it feels like for nothing.  I know better though and have to keep my drive, focus and make everyday better than the last.  I’ve put the work in and now as I continue I will reap some rewards, I can feel it coming.

Nutrition changes that’s the next step. As I’m working out more my body is demanding I fuel it. I just need to set up a cleaner way to stay fueled and increase my results!

Photo: Pintrest

I Love Burpees?

Its hard to say and I still think about it in my head and I’m trying to figure out the emotion but I miss burpees!  Don’t get me wrong I HATE burpees but I feel like I’m in a bad highschool relationship where I miss and love the thing that hurts me…..

I first realized this when I watched LO going through her routine at the gym blasting out burpees like no tomorrow (and then colapsing on the mat).  I guess its a case of you want what you can’t have, and I can’t wait until I can hate burpees again!

LO after her last set of BURPEES!

My P.T. is going well so hopfully soon.  Do some burpees for me today!!!!

I Scream You Scream We All Scream For……

I will be first to admit I’m an emotional eater and will even be quoted joking saying, “I eat my feelings” but its true.  I use eating as comfort, stress relief and to celebrate.  I can think back to finals in college and would run out to the 24 hour grocery store around 1:00am and pick up a cherry pie with a pint of ice cream and finish it before the sun came up while studying.  In my mind a promotion equals a big dinner and a bottle of wine (or 2) maybe with some ice cream.  If I’m feeling blue nothing beats a couple pints of ice cream, see the pattern? It starts with Ben & rhymes with hairy’s…..

Maryann Tomovich Jacobsen’s topic about rewarding your child with food, I feel is spot on.  My parents love to celebrate and reward with food.  It’s an instant gratification reward and as a parent you want to make your child happy (and make them do something without a drag out fight). I don’t hate them for it but I feel that I have an unhealthy relationship with food in part because of it.  I am what rewarding a child with food looks like 20 years later……

Being the father of a 6 year old I’m having trouble not becoming my parents.  I have such an emotional connection to food that I find myself repeating my parent’s mistakes.  This past weekend was the last weekend before school started and one of the first things that popped into my head was to make a big deal about it and tell my son we needed to go get ice cream to celebrate the last weekend before school. What was I thinking! I am constantly fighting back events or moments like this because I know the effects they had on me.

Then you add in the “Grandparent” factor. My son sees my parents often and he falls victim to the same rearing that I did. Actually he hustles for it…..  It’s been very hard trying to break my parents of their habits. Is it just me or do parents not take being parented very well? I’ve lost more than I’ve won I’m sad to say. It’s not their fault I’m sure they were raised the same way and were rewarded with food when they were children.

This topic has been on deck a lot lately with LO and I and this article is just one of thousands on the subject. It makes me realize that I need to fight for my sons healthy choices, just as much as I need to fight for my healthy choices, and fight I will do.  It wont be easy, just the other day we were having breakfast and the waitress asked my son what kind of toast he wanted. LO answered wheat while my son answered white.  I then broke the tie saying wheat, but guess what came out of the kitchen.  Even a total Stranger was willing to have her tip suffer because she wanted to make my son happy.  Yep, white toast was on that plate.

Just like with myself I’ll never give up and never stop improving for me and for my son.

Photo via Pinterest

Wary Weekends

The run that wasn’t…..

So the past weekend was a mixed bag for me.  Saturday started off right; I got up and prepped to run 8 miles for my long run.  I can create all sorts of excuses but I cracked at the 3.5 mile marker……  The rest of the weekend was an up and down challenge.   We attend the LPGA Futures Tour (with championship pavilion passes!), took my son camping over night (I didn’t have a S’more!) on his last Weekend before school started and even got a little time at the pool in between storms.

Weekends are the hardest time for me when training.  All work week long I drink lots of water and implement healthy eating and then the weekend comes with beer and cheeseburgers…… oh don’t forget the pasta salad.  I will thank ichoosetolivestronger for giving me the recipe to bake Kale Chips at home (well LO baked them).  I didn’t realize how much I would like them!  My son even liked them so much they’re packed in his lunch for school today.

I had a very event heavy weekend and for the most part had a fun time, but when I fall off of my healthy menu and don’t hit the training goals I set for myself I end up feeling kind of empty on Monday. So after my first full week I can’t say it was a total success.  What I can say is its forward momentum that I will build off of.  This week will be better than the last and today will be better than yesterday because that’s my expectation of myself!

Friday the 31^st will be the next numbers day, see if I’ve made an impact yet, stay tuned.

How do you beat the weekend? Really I need help…….

NO GIFTS……..

I don’t know how to describe the feeling I have right now as I read the Wall Street Journal’s article on Lance Armstrong. I have a heavy feeling in my chest.

Since I learned how to ride I have been a huge fan of the bicycle.  I still can picture every bike I’ve owned since I was 8 years old.  The pride I had when I got my pastel blue GT Pro Performer, the excitement of being surprised on my birthday with my first mountain bike, a chrome Fuji Thrill.  I have never lost the love for bicycles (I should take a picture of the bike wall in the garage) and the feeling they give me when I ride.

Your Shake Weight will be Jealous

I became part of “The Movement” well before my injury.  My good friend who also happens to be the Director of Fitness at my gym introduced me to TRX.  I looked at the TRX bands and images of Tony Little danced through my head.  I might have made a sarcastic comment, but then the workout began.  Lets say TRX earned my respect that day. Nothing against Tony, I’m sure you understand.

After that, I started using the TRX suspension trainer at my local gym so much that I contemplated buying the system for my garage and just canceling my membership.  All I can say is, I should have, but I’m a sucker for a sauna…… DAMN YOU SAUNA!

After my injury TRX is still proving its worth and results for me.  I have limited motion and strength in my shoulder, but with the versatility of the TRX system I can adjust the load on the exercise as I need and it’s even helping me stretch out and increase my range of motion. So not only am I increasing strength (slowly) but I’m helping increase my range of motion (My PT is very happy with my progress so far).

If you haven’t used the system I recommend it highly.  The video above has a bunch of clips by TRX one after the other.  Once you get with the movement your Shake Weight will be rusty with jealousy, collecting dust on the shelf.

Sorry Shake Weight.

What Do You Think?

Changed up the look, is it better or worse?