I got moderately derailed in my training the week before last by getting sick. But this is not a problem. I didn’t get incredibly sick, but sick enough that I couldn’t (or at the very least shouldn’t have) trained last week. So I didn’t. This was a little disheartening at first, since here I am so close to the finish line and I just lost a whole week of progress. But at the advice of my girlfriend Kelsey, I’m adding a week to my program. I’m not missing out on the full 12 weeks. This upcoming week, which would be week 11, in real circumstances, will be my week 10. Which means I have only three more weeks of training to complete this challenge and hit my goals. September 29th, you are my new bitch. I’ll meet you at the finish line.
We’re doing alright. Food has been an issue. In that, I find it hard to eat enough. Even on days when I hit the minimum 5 meals a day, and sometimes six, I’m still not getting enough food. My body’s flying thru calories like a crazy person, and there were days in the past week, when it was also hard when traveling around the city, to drink enough water. So I’m focusing on that for the last three weeks. I want to make sure I hit my training, but really put it in hard for these last three weeks. This is the last quarter. This big sprint. So I have to be training really hard and fueling myself just as well, if not harder. So we’ve got a focus on meals. More meals and bigger portions. I am an oddity in this aspect, but eating more frequently has sped up my metabolism more too, so now it’s used to it. Keep it going.
My legs, specifically my joints, are in shock from running this week. I’m a little worried I pushed myself too hard for impact, and now I’ve derailed my progress. We’ll have to see by Tuesday, after I’ve had time to recover. I held back on legs day, with my tendons still really tender, and I might have to give myself another half a week. We’ll see. I want to hit my running goal, and I’m getting pretty close. I’m holding a steady pace for three to four minutes at a time now, and I’m very close. If I can run for seven minutes without stopping, I can hit a mile. That’s about how fast I’ve been running. It’s moderate, but awesome for me. And I feel fantastic doing it.
I’ve been dealing with moments of not wanting to go to the gym in the past week. More specifically, not wanting to up my energy enough to bring my “A-Game” to the gym. I try and rationalize saying “Well, if you’re not all there and focused, you’ll be wasting your time.” But that’s bullshit. Because just stepping into the practice and doing it anyways, making it habitual, changes things. And sure enough, when I took the first step to change into my gym clothes, I already felt more awake. Not kidding. I started to feel better. And after I trained - I felt awesome. It worked. I stepped in anyways, and felt fantastic for having overcome the Resistance. That’s the buzz that’s worth focusing on. My alive, my body is awake, I’m here, AND I didn’t give in to doubt and talking myself into staying home that night. I did it anyways, and pushing thru something that really still does scare me a little, when I beat that aspect of it, made me feel damn good. I also got the encouragement, while doing ab exercizes the other day, of being able to see all of my abs for a few minutes, when I was really pumped up. THAT was a good marker. I’m aiming for six pack abs among my other primary goals. I may not hit it during this 12 weeks, but I CAN SEE THEM. Bam. I’m almost there. That’s a good thing.
Three more weeks. In a way, I almost wish there was more. THAT’S definitely a sign that I’m learning well. Courting struggle. A good place to be. Special thanks to Steven Pressfield and his book “The War of Art” this week as well. It’s a book about this very thing: Resistance. How it’s the only thing that’s really stopping you from living the live you’re supposed to, you need to, you want to. And how to take it head on and not let it defeat you. Part writer’s tip book, part philosophical treatise, part marching orders - it’s a good read, and real short. Enjoy it from your local library.