Going back to the beginning?

So this week I had my work physical and it brought into reality exactly where I stand...healthy and above average in all aspects. I should be happy with that, but frankly, I'm not. Despite my body weight only going up one pound and my treadmill test remaining the same, my body fat is up from 19 to 22-23%.  A lot of that stems from a less-active lifestyle. My days off, which normally consist of running the perros and hitting crossfit have been replaced with eight-hour days at school or 12-hour clinicals. The diet has taken a huge hit as well: convenience eating (dining out or processed pre-made meals) and snacking on sugary sweets to stay awake in class or fight the boredom.

This week was the eye opener I needed. Time to re-evaluate what my goals are and how to reach them. Lots of people have New Year's Resolutions, well I'm not waiting another two months to get back on track. Looking back at earlier blogs, time to re-up my commitment to a healthier and happier life. So today I'll tackle the goals:

Goals:
1. Lean up. My first blog ever, I set the goal for 15%...this time around I would like to just get back below 19% and stay there.
2. Start running again. I would like to run 4-5 times a week and get my 5K time below 25min. I don't have any races in near future, but that shouldn't stop me from hitting the pavement. I know the pups would sure appreciate it. Besides, nothing beats breathing in the cold morning air and feeling the lungs start to burn.
3. Make smarter food choices. Time to go back to primal and dump the processed semi-food. Also time to listen to my body and feed it what it needs to excel not what I can get my grubby hands on at the time.
4. Get back to my gym roots. I feel like total outsider since I basically went MIA from Crossfit Southwest. I really miss my family there. Strangely enough, I miss getting my ass kicked by Ken too.
5. Be happier with myself. This might be my loftiest but also most important goal--to change from the inside out.

So what are your goals? Any tips on how you reached them or will reach them?

Next time, I'll talk about setting out a plan...

Challenge Over--ish

So the 30 day challenge was officially over on Sunday, but I was working a 48 so I'm just now getting around to writing about it. It's funny...things have not really changed all that much since it finished. I'm still eating pretty much paleo--with a few minor adjustments. I missed you oatmeal! My body seems to crave mostly protein, healthy fats (mmm...avocados), and veggies now. I feel like I am more in-tune with my body, I eat when I'm hungry and have given up the "eat every 2-3 hours, even if you're not hungry" mantra. It's almost as if the challenge hit the reset button on my body.

So let's look back on a few of my reasons for doing the low-carb paleo challenge and see if it accomplished what I was hoping:
1) Lean up. 
I may not have made the unrealistic drastic changes I was secretly hoping for, but this is the beginning to lasting changes. A few wise friends pointed out that the scale only gives us an arbitrary number and that what we see in the mirror and how we feel are the real gauges to health. So how do I feel? I still struggle with what I see in the mirror but I do appreciate my clothes fitting better and my legs and butt look especially fantastic :p I have noticed I'm getting more vascular...even the veins in my feet are starting to pop out. A fun little sign that I'm heading in the right direction.  
2) Dominate fitness/competition. 
This one for sure is improving.  My run times are slowly improving...here I come sub 25min 5K! My strength is improving...I did 7 legit strict pullups the other day!! 10 is just around the corner.  Oh, and I can still throw over 140 feet in hammer even after a year off of coaching and four years since competing.  I am less than 12 weeks away from the police and fire games and feel like I am right on track. 
3) Shake things up & tear down the mental barriers.
This is probably the most difficult for me.  I've struggled my whole life with bouts of self-doubt and low self-esteem.  Only those closest to me have really seen this side, until now that is. It is embarrassing yet therapeutic to publicize my fears and struggles. It's kind of like AA (or so I assume)...the first step of any problem is to admit you have one. The next step is to conquer my self-doubt and see myself for all the wonder that is me.  So I'd say things are shook and those barriers are slowly getting chipped away.


So what does the future hold? Guess you'll just have to check back for updates...