Well... hellllllloooooooo there! Been a while since I've posted - which means I am not exactly living up to my goal of updating this at least twice per month. I need to get better at that - something to keep working on since this is to be my 'diary' towards getting an Ironman finish.
Anyway - enough of that bibble babble. On to more interesting topics which prompted me to get back to this with an update. So much has happened since my last post I don't really know where to start. I suppose I'll start with the easy update - my weight which I committed to post from time to time. As of this morning, my weight was 266.8 lbs. Down about 18 since the last post. BUT - more important - down 20 lbs in the last 3 weeks. Yes, I said 3 weeks.
What am I doing differently? I decided to give up on all 'diets' and 'fads' and everything you would find in the best seller section of the bookstore. I decided (as my lovely wife has been telling me for 10 years) to just start eating ... wait for it.... HEALTHY. So - what does 'healthy' mean? For me it means eating more veggies and lean meats. With the occasional fruit thrown in. It means having minimal (but not "none") grains. It means I went from drinking a 6pk + beer on weekends to a total of 3 beers in three weeks. It means I have not had ice cream, french fries, anything else fried, cookies, etc in that time. Although we did treat ourselves at the Melting Pot this past Saturday night with some cheesy dip and chocolate (and 2 of the 3 beers). But that was a 1 night event that we planned. Back to eating healthy the next day. In years past, I would have looked at that event, blown it big time, and then carried the splurge into Sunday while telling myself "I'll start back on Monday". The difference this time? It's not a "start back" kind of thing anymore. It's a true, honest to goodness, lifestyle change. (damn that felt good to say - and to actually believe)
So - in addition to changing my eating habits, I have also ramped up the training in the last few weeks. Specifically, I am participating in something called Fastcamp which is being led (for free) by the fine folks at www.EnduranceNation.us. It is an 8 week "camp" designed to make you go - well - FAST! And since I am pretty sssslllloooowwwww at swimming, running, and biking, I figured I could benefit. And that started last week. But before that, I had already started increasing my time on the bike and in the gym. I had just completed a 12 week cycle specific strength program, had ridden my bike trainer a ton, went to an occasional spin class, and was either running or doing the elliptical. So when fastcamp started I was already used to the 430am wake ups and working out while on the road.
But I gotta tell you - I am absolutely LOVING the fastcamp experience. Perhaps it is because someone else is coming up with the workouts and laying out the week. Perhaps it is because the philosophy behind the workouts make sense to me. Perhaps it is because it is free. Perhaps it is because these guys seem like genuine good guys. Or perhaps it is a combination of all of these plus the fact that I had changed my nutrition therefore I have filled my body with "good" fuel as opposed to "crap" fuel as I have tended to do in the past. Regardless, I am enjoying the workouts so far and am glad to have started the program. And as with updating my weight loss from time to time, I will be updating my fastcamp experience as well. And after 8 weeks, my continued training as I work towards my races this year.
I suppose that is enough for now. Until next time.... work hard, play hard!!
Tears.....just a couple. :)
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