Merry Xmas!

Day 143-149

12/21/12 - 12/26/12

Man is it hard to make it through the holidays eating healthy. There is just so much opportunity to eat poorly. I certainly did my fair share. I had more cake and cookies than I’ve had in the last 100 days and I even had two drinks on my wife’s birthday. If there is one day out of every year that is not about me it is my wife’s birthday. She asked me if I would have some drinks with her and of course my answer was yes.  A glass of Champaign and a raspberry Saki mojito, hit the spot. So much fun, after 15 years I still love her so much.

On a fitness note that was pretty much it, stayed pretty close to my caloric intake and defiantly put in at least 100 push ups and sit ups everyday I did not make it to the gym or go snowboard.

My wife got me a heart rate monitor for xmas and today was my first day using it, other than the fact that I walked around all day on Christmas letting everyone know what my heart rate was. I am not 100 percent sure what I am doing with it so I just kept my heart rate really high the whole time I worked out today. About 138 - 177 beats per minute during the work outs, including a 14 minute run at 8 and 8.5 on the treadmil with a heart rate of 177-183l. I will run a sub 20 minute 5k at some point this year.  I really do not like treadmills these days? Not sure why, but they make me angry?

Tomorrow I go to my first triathlon club at 5:30am followed by Olympic lifting at 6:30 than to work for a little bit than the whole family is headed to Vail for some mini shred!  So basically I will not be able to walk on Friday.

After the New Year I will try to blog everyday and get back into a routine. New client starts next week, can’t wait! Happy Holidays to everyone, and my heartfelt thoughts to those who Holidays were not blessed with happiness.

Machine Guns and Snowboarding...

Day 129 - 142

12/7/12-12/20/12

What a shitty job I have done of blogging lately. Sorry to anyone that reads this (all 10 of you),  and has been anxiously awaiting an update. It feels like an eternity since I have  wrote but it has only been about 13 days, but man a lot can happen in two weeks.

The worst thing that happen was a mass shooting by a psycho-path at an elementary school in my home state of Connecticut.  What a fucking coward to go into a school kill little children and than turn the gun on yourself,  little bitch. The truth is there will never be anything you can do about crazy people wanting to take other peoples life. However there is something you can do to make it more difficult for them to get thee hands on machine guns. What world are you living in that you think you need a machine gun? Just in case our society comes to a crashing halt and its everyman for themselves. It  is so crazy to live your life under this assumption. I have a favorite quote that says that “every generation is a mystery unto themselves.” This has always given me a sense of comfort because it is so true, my dads generation was hiding under desk at school, we were scared of the Russians, nowadays people are still waiting for the end of the world. Whether it is global warming or fiscal catastrophes so many humans have this internal fear that the end is near. How many generations have come and gone living with this fear that never materializes?

So instead of banning assault rifles (machine guns), our fear leads us to believe that we must have these things to protect ourselves from something that does not exist.  Hopefully calmer heads will prevail and realize we do not need these items to be easily obtainable. Even if it had only saved five children because he was using a pistol instead of an assault rifle, that would be more than worth it.

The best thing that happen over the last thirteen days is actually many things. I have continued on my healthy path although I have had a couple Holiday treats, like warm sugar cookies. Biking and running have been replaced by snowboarding. I could write for hours on the impact snowboarding has had on my life and my belief that achieving a true powder day is one of lives most magical experiences. But  I will try to sum it up with a quick story. I sat on the chair lift with my wife yesterday and we were talking about life. We were discussing how a lot of decisions we have made over the last 15 years have revolved around snowboarding. Most jobs I have taken, the question is always asked when will I be able to ride. We structured our lives around something many people would call a hobby and most would think that was crazy. But as we sat there on the chairlift looking around we asked ourselves what is it that we do in life that is better than spending the day together on the hill. The answer for us is nothing. Would I trade a powder day for a nicer car? No. Would I trade all my powder days for a better job that makes more money? No.  If you don’t understand this it is because you have never experienced it. It’s like trying to explain sex to a virgin, some things you have to experience for yourself.

So what does this mean? Well it means that we are incredibly blessed to know that we have constructed the life that we imagined. We went confidently in the direction of our dreams and it is all starting to pay off. It means that we are the happiest we ever been. Not because of what we have, but because of what we have become.

 When I was graduating from high school my mom asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up and I remember telling her I wanted to be happy. Well mission accomplished. Thank you to the universe for everything, and to all the friends that have become family who inspire me by always chasing their dreams.

I have my first paying personal training client starting on Jan 7th. I hope I have the skills and ability to effect his life in a positive manner, because what better gift could you give someone than happiness?  What brings more happiness that achieving a goal through hard work, dedication, perseverance, and the realization that we as humans are capable of infinitely more things than we give ourselves credit for?

“Success means having the courage, the determination, and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be”