On the lack of updates....

I know its been forever since this blog has been updated. I haven't forgot about you (my loyal 3 followers), I'm working on a big redesign. So I promise, new content is coming soon.

Like she took the words out of my head...

Tara, over at A Life Changing Journey, is one of those amazing internet bloggers who realized she didn't like the life she was living, so she made some changes. Sounds familiar, right? If you have time, read through her archives, that is one strong woman over there. In the meantime I want to direct you to a post she made that really struck a chord with me, The Secret.

 

I get a lot of the same questions, "how do you do it?", "when do you find time?", "what did you do to ______? (lose weight, get fit, eat paleo, etc.)"

 

So here are my "Secrets" to losing weight, getting fit, and finding happiness (which is an ongoing project). Spoiler: there is no magic easy button, if you find one let me know.

 

Find a reason that inspires YOU.

 

My reason to change my life was to run a marathon with my friend. Thats what started MY crazy journey, find something that inspires you.

 

Be ready to change your goals and be inspired be anything.

 

I started losing weight to look better, then ran to lose weight, then started CrossFitting to run better, then started eating better to CrossFit better, then... you get the idea. Right now I just want to be the healthiest that I can be. 

 

Go out and do it. Make what you want happen. Stop being scared. Stop looking for reasons not to. Stop worrying about what other people are thinking. This is about YOU (noticing a theme yet?)

 

Eating Paleo was not an easy change. There are lots of people who don't understand why I don't want to eat pasta, cheese, and pie all the time. I just chose not to listen, and one day I threw out all the non-paleo food in my house.

 

I'm not sure I was ever ready to start running, I just put on my shoes and ran out of my house one morning. Yeah, it was hard at first, but I just kept going.

 

Need more examples, check out BenDoesLife to see how one guy got off the couch and did an IronMan triathalon. 

Find support.

 

My family and friends have been supportive in everything I do, and were excited to hear about my plans to get healthier (except for those of you who laughed when I said that I was going to start running!).

 

I also made friends at the gym, which makes it much easier to go work out most days.

 

I still come across people that don't get it/don't care about my goals, and thats ok. I have enough people to lean on and not everyone has to agree with what I do.

 

Thats how I stuck to my training, dialed in my nutrition, and started taking care of myself. Its not always easy, but the benefits of being healthy are worth it to me.

 

What things have made you successful in your healthy life? Feel free to share in the comments.

CrossFit SoCal Regional recap

I spent this past weekend in Long Beach cheering at the CrossFit Games. I had so much fun, that I just had to share this video to try and give you an idea of how awesome my friends at CrossFit SoCal are.

Our gym had a team competing and 2 individuals. The team placed 19th, Lauren placed 4th, and Seth placed 9th. The SoCal Regional is considered the toughest regional in the world. San Diego, Orange County, and L.A. have so many talented athletes that just making it to the regional is a huge accomplishment.

It was a great weekend of watching awesome and inspiring athletes, catching up with friends at other gyms (huge should out to Lindsay who rocked the Deadlift/Box jump workout for Costa Mesa), and hanging out with everyone from our gym between events (dinner for 20 at El Torito sounds like fun on a Friday night).

Watching all the events just makes me that more excited to continue my own training and coaching. I want to continue achieving new skills (Ring Dips/strict pull-ups/Hand Stand Push-up are next up), and to keep giving my best to each workout. I also want to make sure that I'm helping the athletes I coach reach their best potential whether its making them fit enough to compete at the games next year, strong enough to pass work PT tests, or even just fit enough to run after their toddlers.

I'm alive, really

This blog doesn't get updated nearly as much as I would like. There have been lots of things going on this summer. Big trips, fun races, and a little work (both at the gym and the "real" job). I'm hoping to get some interesting posts up soon. You can look forward to hearing about:

• My Tough Mudder race (which was awesome)
• Keeping up my healthy habits while on vacation (or at least not eating crap just because I'm not at home)
• Adventures in new things, maybe yoga (Jocie- will you take me on Friday?), maybe some new water sports
• What its like to spend 3 days cheering at a CrossFit Regional (can't wait to cheer for Team Costa Mesa in addition to my home team CFSoCal)

So thanks for continuing to check this blog to see if there's new content, and I will work on adding some interesting things for you to read. 

... and a special thanks to those of you that comment. I may not reply to all of them, but I read every comment and they mean the world to me.

Self Imposed Resting

Today was supposed to be a running workout. But sometimes things change, and I ended up with a tough CrossFit workout instead. After the workout, I was presented with the opportunity to run this afternoon (which sounded like tons of fun). I really wanted to say yes, but it's only Tuesday, and I already feel beat up.

I said no to the trail run in the rain. As much as I would have enjoyed the company, the perfect running weather, and another great Tough Mudder training session, I know better. I know lots better. Instead, I decided to enjoy Chipotle for lunch and relax before teaching tonight. This way I will be rested enough to enjoy teaching my classes, and rested enough to hit tomorrow night's track workout hard.

Like a lot of other people I know, I like to keep pushing and keep going all the time. It may be hard for me to put on the breaks sometimes, but taking the time to rest makes me a happier and healthier person.