International Happiness Day 2014!

Today is International Happiness Day.  I'm sad to say that I didn't know that this day even existed!

It got me thinking though about changes in my life as well as this picture I saw the other day ... Can you think of 10 things that make you smile?  

I did eventually think of 10 things that make me smile, but it was a little harder than I would like to admit.  I don't think that anyone takes enough time to think about and actually appreciate what's in our lives that makes us happy. 

And thus, one thing that makes me smile ... going to the gym.

I am "that guy".  Call me what you will - meathead, gym rat, fitness freak - don't care.  It took me until I was almost 30 years old to actually start working out and appreciate what it does for my body and my life as a whole. 

In my last post I gave a quick overview of my diet and weight loss journey.  In the spirit of happiness, I am going to now share with you a little about my fitness journey to bring you up to speed with my crazy ass as of today.

Where to start ... 

Middle school.  I wanted to be like my big sis so I started playing volleyball.  I sucked ass and she was a Captain of her team.  I tried my damnedest to keep up, didn't work, and I eventually just quit.  I was a freshmen in High School.

I don't think I actually worked out again until I was 23.  No, this is not a joke.  Outside of gym class or running around at a party or shopping, I stay pretty lazy and immobile.  

I attempted to join the gym in college.  I only lasted at that college a semester, and never once stepped foot in the gym.  I joined another gym at about 23 with a friend, went maybe 17 times in a year.  And when I went, I walked at a 1MPH speed for like 10 minutes ... I did nothing.  I dabbled in co-ed Softball leagues, filling in here and there around the age of 26, but I did more beer drinking and cigarette smoking on the bench than anything.  

When I was about 28 is when things started to turn around. 

I had been at a weight loss plateau for 3 years.  I was living in Richmond, VA at this time and I decided to join a gym that a friend went to.  I rarely if ever went with said friend, but I started going.  I had a bunch of friends who started participating in Warrior Dash races, I love the chance to get messy so I set my first goal!  Finally in September 2012, I completed mine.

This is where I got addicted.  Not with running, but with setting goals and meeting them.  I am a born planner.  And a cheap ass.  So finding something that I have to pay for in advance, and can plan for ... it was a no brainer. 

The next goal I kept a secret because I felt like it was going to be a real far reach for me.  I chose my first road race - The Shamrock 8K on March 8, 2013, in Virginia Beach, VA.  I trained for about 4 months and once the race arrived I didn't want to be there.  Training burnt me out.  I also signed up for the wrong corral, so I had to dodge walkers and strollers for the first 1.5 miles.  Gross.  In the end, I finished that race in 52 minutes.  I was proud that I finished, that was my goal, cross that finish line.  I later found out that time is quite impressive for a newbie runner (GO ME!).  

Somewhere after that race - even though I felt like complete and utter ass after finishing, I got this crazy ass idea that I wanted to complete 10 races in 2013.  I started searching and signing up.  

I ended up running a variety of Distance ... 8k, 5k, 10k, and 1/2 Marathons.

I ran small town races where you didn't even get a bib or chip.  I participated in some with good causes, Susan G. Kohmen Race for the Cure.  I also participated in brewery races - start and finish at a local brewery - Genius!

I signed up for my 10th race around June, the race would be completed in August.  I thought that was too early to be done, so I decided to shoot for 20 races by year end.  I am insane.  I started signing up again.  The half marathon ended up being a fluke - I took over a friends registration and decided to wing it - no training.  It was one of the last races I ran all year.  

Now, back up to the Shamrock.  I had a friend who told me about CrossFit and convinced me that I would love it, so I joined right about the time I ran the 8k.  

I fell in love with CrossFit from the minute I met the coaches and picked up that bar.  I have been doing it for just over a year now.  

Through the year, CrossFit was my primary training for all of these races.  I would run outside when the weather was nice, dabbled in treadmill running too.

Around September 2013 is when I started to have second thoughts about beating up my body like I had been.  I made the decision to stop running races and focus on CrossFit.  It was where my hear really was.  I ran my last race on Thanksgiving Day 2013, meeting my last running goal of the year - a 5k under 30 minutes.  

In October I volunteered at The Granite Games CrossFit competition to help support the MN CrossFit community and also to support my fellow box mates who were competing.  After that, I signed up for my first competition.  I chose to compete in Freeze Fest Challenge in February 2014.  It was a co-ed partner competition, and I got the most kick ass partner on the planet.  

Through my year in CrossFit, training for that 6 event competition, and powerlifting in my spare time, I have become completely and utterly obsessed with this sport.  I am SO not the fittest or the strongest.  I have my strengths and many more weaknesses, but CrossFit continues to challenge me every day, and forces me to work on what is hard for me.  Yes, it gets frustrating at times, but there are far more rewards in the end.

Joining CrossFit also really helped me learn about fitness as a whole, what else is out there, and how to connect nutrition and fitness and find success. 

I have the best coach ever at my current box, TwinTown CrossFit in Minneapolis, MN; he has taught me so much about nutrition, how to balance meals, what to eat and how much of things to eat.  He also really gets to know my goals.  We meet almost monthly to sit down and talk about where I am, what I want to do and what I need to do to get there.

You'll hear much more as these posts go on about CrossFit so I will stop there with the gushing ... back to goal talk.

After Freeze Fest Challenge I started looking for the next thing for me.  

Powerlifting is a big strength of mine, so I chose a Powerlifting meet to compete in.  I will be competing in Duluth, MN at Twin Ports Raw Open on May 17, 2014.  I just started my training program this week and couldn't be more stoked!!  I have made the decision to cut only about 5 pounds (this meet won't have women's weight classes so cutting isn't really necessary), and I found the MN state records and am in the midst of setting my goals for the meet.

After that ... June 20th, I will be headed to Fargo, ND with my Freeze Fest partner to compete in The Dakota Games.  We will be individually competing this time, but talked each other into doing it, support is key.  This is another CrossFit competition so I am incredibly nervous.  I still lack a lot of skills needed to compete, I have a lot of work I have been doing and that I need to do.  

Since I have a lot of work to do, when I am not WOD'ing, or Powerlifting, I am working on random skills and technique.  Like handstands. Of all kinds.

Being able to work on SO many things I find myself very lucky.  I have the best support system ever.  Frankly I am still very shocked and flattered when I realize how many people out there really are cheering for me.  Couldn't be more thankful.

I am also very lucky to still have my health.  After going through so much of my life overweight, bad eating habits, not working out, I have turned my life about 400%.  I always say - guess I had to do it sometime!  I also like to think I get better with age.  Before I am 31, I will have completed 2 CrossFit competitions and one Powerlifting meet.  Not to mention approximately 16 races.  That's pretty damn cool if you ask me.

Aside from all of this running, races, CrossFitting, lifting and competing ... I also dabble in yoga.  I stopped going for a while and just started back this week.  I couldn't be happier, it is one of the best things I have found in life.  Not only is it a challenge fitness wise and for your body, it is a challenge for your mind.  Yoga is very difficult and very emotional.  I love it.

I have also wanted to try meditation for some time, and I am happy to report, I signed up for a 21 day meditation challenge.  If anyone else has been interested in meditation, join me!  Here is what I am doing: http://www.mentorschannel.com/AriannaHuffington/OnBecomingFearless/LandingPage/ 

So that's it.  I made a lot of changes in my fitness in a short amount of time, and I don't think I would have been happy if I hadn't tried everything out that I have.  I failed at spin class, danced like a white girl at Zumba ... but I had fun doing it all.

I am still trying to figure all of this stuff out, but I think I have a really good start.  Also finding my love of CrossFit and Powerlifting, really has helped me get my goals in line.

So, now that you are up to speed, what can you expect?

You can expect to see a lot of my training.  I am training for both Twin Ports and Dakota on my own.  I am attending normal WOD's and Open Gym for skill work, but I am going it alone for the "actual" training plan.  I am going to have a lot of realizations, I am going to have a lot of shitty moments, but I am excited.

I hope that in this journey, I can bring everyone some cool stuff I've learned and share a lot of what I am doing.  I love pictures (follow my Instagram - link on the side) and I love talking about working out.

Well, that's that.  The quickie background of my road to fitness.

Now that I have some history (fat, food, fitness) out of the way, on to the real stuff.  Posts from now on will be what I am doing in life ... the stuff I know everyone REALLY wants to read about!  

Happy Almost Friday!

#fitness #CrossFit #Powerlifting #Yoga #Meditation #goals #inspiration #motivation #adventures #friends #family #support #creatingdefinitions