About

August 3rd, 2015

I’m sitting here at my house, and I’m feeling something. Fear. Uncertainty. Nervousness. That’s funny. I don’t know why I’m feeling these things, but there they are, nonetheless. Working out isn’t new to me, but I’m sort of like a re-virginized version of my former strong and fit self. I have been working out on my own, consistently, for about 4 months now. This, after a hiatus of…well, let’s just say it’s been a long time.

About 5 months ago, I went to CrossFit Eagle Rock and went through the Build-Up program. I loved it. It was invigorating, challenging, and mostly, it was just pretty damn fun. I loved the community of CrossFit, but I’m funny in that I like to do shit on my own. So I set out to do just that. And it worked. For the most part. If nothing else, it got me going, got me off my lazy ass and lit a fire in me. There was only one little problem. It quickly became apparent that I was going to reach a ceiling, and even a hermit like me realized that I was going to need something more, and that required coming out of my cave and facing the blazing sunshine of peak levels of fitness.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not really lazy. In fact, I work hard as hell most of the time. I’m an avid hiker, and my favorite and most consistent partner is my amazing pup, Molly. When I say I hike, let me be clear, anything less than 6 miles and without at least an elevation gain of 1000 feet feels boring to me. I’m fit enough. I’m in shape enough. I’m strong enough. But here’s the problem: I’m not satisfied anymore with just “enough.” Hence, the journey on which I’m about to embark, and I’m asking you to come along with me.

I’m an average guy in so many respects. I was (my ego still thinks I am) a pretty decent athlete in my day, but at 41, even I have to admit that maybe I’ve lost a step. Physically, I still like to think I’m a 19 year old who can conquer the world. My body, however, has definitely began to show signs of wear and tear. (When the hell did this all happen?)

I’m scared. I took off for about 10 days to visit family back in the Midwest, and I drank, I ate, and I lazed around like an unofficial pro looking for sponsorships. I figured if I was about to traverse the road of ultimate fitness, I was going to get a whole crap load of debauchery in before I did it. Let’s just say I was extremely successful in this endeavor. But now I’m scared. Today it begins, and I’m nervous. Now there is no more time left to procrastinate. I’ve committed, and I’m not allowing myself to back out. I AM going to transform this body of mine into a lean, mean, building-jumping machine. I have a fantasy of climbing buildings, despite my overwhelming fear of heights. I’ll let you know how that goes as we progress.

I’m jumping in for the full immersion experience into this CrossFit thing, and I’m asking you to come along with me for the ride. Look, I have very aggressive goals. I’m going to be putting myself through what some might consider too much, but I have a place I’m trying to reach, and I’ll be damned if I don’t make it. I’m not saying you should do exactly what I’m doing, and I’m not saying I’m an expert. Follow me at your own risk. Cool? You’ve been warned. I want a strong, hard body. I want stomach muscles that show off. I want strong arms and shoulders, a stable core, and in the words of Ren, “large pectoral muscles”. If you don’t know Ren & Stimpy, please, use a Google search, I only have time to impart so much wisdom without exhausting myself.
I’m just a normal 41 year old dude, and if I can do this, then you can to. That’s my hope. You and me. We’ll do this together. I’ll show you what I’m doing, what I’m learning, and keep you updated on how it’s going for me. My goal is to give you updates with pics, videos, and of course, my incredibly witty (ridiculous?) meandering writing style. You can just be a voyeur, or you can be a participant. Either way, I hope we inspire each other, and others around us. Change is hard, or at least so they say, but when we stop wanting to want it, and we start to just WANT it, then we move forward towards our goals and dreams. I hope you’ll join me, and I hope you enjoy the ride.