Turkey Trot

Second annual Ward family participation in the Turkey Trot. Don ran with Hannah in the stroller, Grace ran along side me. Emilee hung out with Grandpa waiting for us at the finish line.

Monsters Go Away

I'm putting up this post with a little trepidation - as there's the whole female thing of not wanting anyone to know what you weigh, or your age. Well I'm just going to be brave and show you my measurements - and my turning 40 was pretty well publicized last year.

So - I'm doing this for Mel - cause she's followed my same path in a way - and she worries about that monster that will sneak back into the closet and pull down the larger size clothes from that bin at on the top shelf. Hate that monster. And for those other gals out there in the CrossFit program who are keeping faith in the "no more freaking excuses" mantra.

So almost 2 years ago - I started wtih CrossFit, with seriously following the Zone, food logging and taking Advocare. It took me a year to take off 68lbs and 45 inches. This would have been Feb 08.

Looking across the last 10 months (Feb 08 to today), I've been a devoted attender to my Lake Pointe boot camp, did my best to get into the gym at least once for a "Carey attitude adjustment" and I started this whole fun side training stuff like Cap10k, Danskin, etc... I've kept up my Advocare, but will admit I dropped of food journaling, lost my intent focus on the Zone (though I'd say I'm in "Zone favorable" land 70% of the time), and hadn't done a body assessment since June 08. I used to go every month.

So - I did body assessment this week - and was worried. If those numbers went up, how would I cope? Would that monster show up? How much ground had I lost? Fortunate for me - I'm happy with the metrics - which is why I think I decided to post them. I've not changed much in terms of the scale, but I've dropped another 8 inches.

What does this mean to me? It's good and bad. It's good, cause I've not gone backward into the grips of the monster - my committment to CrossFit, Advocare and eating in my "Zone favorable land" has kept me stable. It's bad - cause I've wasted time not doing more to be healthier, smaller, fitter, stronger... but what a nice time of year to figure this all out.... New Year's resoluion planning is here and I AM CROSSFIT is the program I will use to get back on track.

Take that, monster. And you aren't welcome at Mel's house either - nor any of my CrossFit friends.

Today, this day before Thaksgiving - I'm going to shout out to my boot camp bombshell pals - for I can't imagine my life without seeing them (or most of them) 3x per week. We do a lot of chit-chat - sometimes to Jeremy's or Crystal's dismay - we lament together and we congratulate success together. There are days I'm the bug and days I'm the windshield -- but there's not ever a day when I don't want to be there - because of superior coaching, the wonderful friendships that have been forged, and oh yeah - those great results I see when I go, and that I worry will fade if I miss. Thank you for the motivation you give me, ladies!

Oh, Hell Yeah!!!!

At first, which would have been early October, I was a reluctant turkey - hearing about the program, and thinking - oh, I'd not want to let a team down. The whole "last picked in dodge-ball in elementary school" fright set in. But I ended up saying hell-yeah, and I was a turkey on Zachary's Zone-Out Turkeys team. Next, I was a homeless turkey when that team dissolved, then I planned to just sleep in that day, and then, I was put on John DelPeral's team - Tabata Turkeys. What an AWSOME stroke of luck for me. JDP, Richard, Walter, Havalah, Beth, Ashley and me... took the top prize in this morning's Lean Turkey Sprint. I have to say, the work out was daunting - and I was nervous sick to my stomach before it all started... but that's part of what I love about CrossFit. Get outta your comfort zone and can the excuses. Like JDP said, while our shirts said "i>u", it was that WE were greater than those other 6 teams -- today anyway. Great coaching and strategy JDP - and to my other teammates congrats, it was fun AND, let's eat!! I like my steak medium rare, please.

Whoop, there it is!

Shout out to my pal Kelly and her husband Jeff for tackling the San Antonio Half Marathon. They hit their goal time, and by the looks on their face, had a great time. Kelly says the smiles are all because they are just getting started in the race. I'm quite sure there were smiles when they crossed that finish line. Kudos to you both!!!

Raising Girls

The social pressure to fit a "perfect" mold have been there since I can remember - but now that we have girls to raise, and one in middle school who was being made fun of for not knowing that Hollister was...(a clothing store with outrageous prices and limited coverage clothing)... well, I'm overwhelmed sometimes. How will Don and I raise three girls, always finding the way to bolster their self esteem and their sense of worth? I don't have the answers - but the healthy lifestyle Don and I try to lead every day surely will help. Nutrition, exercise... telling them every day they are smart, talented and beautiful - telling them that the media is NOT the mirror, nor their shallow friends who would judge them on their clothing label.

http://www.dove.us/#/features/videos/default.aspx[cp-documentid=7049560]/

Take a quick moment to watch Onslaught and Evolution. Crazy.

Start Em Young I Say...

Hannah and Savannah, tossing around some KB on a beautiful Saturday morning at the UTB. And Coach Randal helps the UTB CrossFitters "love" those rings. A little saying I found under the bridge inspired a quick photo.