Some people have it, some people don't. For some, things come naturally and for others those things takes months of hard work and dedication. I have begun to develop a new respect for the people who are naturally aware of their body and it's movements. Dancers, gymnasts, and of course, CrossFitters. I am in fact NOT one of those who can naturally control my body and it's motions.
Hindsight is 20/20. I think back now and I can't tell you how many times I have said, "I have the rhythm of a 2 year old" when it comes to dancing. I can't dance. I know that. I can do the cheesy 80s moves, but that's because they are cheesy and rather silly looking to say the least. Hold a video of me up next to a video of J-Lo (who, by the way, naturally has got IT) and you will see what I mean. In fact, hold that video up next to any high school age girl and you will see what I mean.
I think the first time I realized that I am a bit of an uncoordinated mess goes all the way back to senior year of high school. There I was, on the slopes of beautiful northern Sweden after having finished a week's worth of half-day lessons with an equally beautiful Swedish skier by the name of Kjell (shell) and I was zooming down the rather busy face of the mountain. All of a sudden, my head said go left and my body went right and I was done. Splat on the side of the mountain and not just anywhere on the side of the mountain, but directly underneath the chair lifts (because of course, that's my luck). I'm not joking when I tell you I heard the gasps from people that watched me fall. It wasn't that bad, but what shocked them more was the rather odd looking pretzel shape that I was sitting in under the chairs. All of a sudden, from about 20 feet above I hear,"Are you all right? I'll be right there!" Much to my embarrassment, a kind Swede knew that 1) I was American and 2) I was in a bit of a tight spot. I could not figure out how to command my legs to untangle themselves. I lost all sense in the time/space relationship to be able to tell my left leg to extract itself from the pretzel. This was not because I was hurt- I skiied the rest of the afternoon. It was because I had no idea how to tell my various muscles to move. I can't control my body that way...that's why I ran and swam and also why I am a sprinter. All or nothing- no control. I worked my hardest to get myself up and skiing away before any of those folks on the chair lift made it even remotely close to my side of the mountain. Thankfully, after I took both skis off and threw the poles I was able to use my arms to move my legs out of each other's way.
I stand now, thinking about this as I am wrapping up month 1 of trying to do a kipping pull-up. I have practiced a bit each time I go in to the gym and am trying to get the motion down, but it's not there yet. I watch another woman who also tried to get the kipping pull-up. She started about 2 weeks after me and has been doing them for about a week now. Even I can figure out it only took her 1 week to put all of the moves together and get it. I'm on week 4. I have coordination issues. I am now able to string together multiple dead lifts, but that's about as far as I go. Still working on the kipping pull-up and not quite there. I just don't have "it."
That's ok with me. I don't mind. Maybe it will help me remain interested in the gym for a long time. Because I'm going to take a long time to get anything right! It definitely gives me a HUGE feeling of satisfaction when I finally do get something right. I'm like that little kid, looking for praise from the teacher. When I get it, I feel like clapping and jumping up and down. I finally got the snatch the other day. While I wasn't the fastest in the world, I was pretty proud of myself for getting 30 of them strung together in groups of 10...without losing total form!
So, maybe I don't have "it," but I'm willing to work for "it" and the rewards will be big.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
The Results are In
It's over! I know EVERYONE has been anxiously awaiting the results of the Paleo Challenge and how I did. I couldn't hold myself accountable on the blog because quite frankly, I was too busy cutting, chopping, shopping and boiling eggs (which I still can't get right! I have a tough time getting them so they will peel easily). That, coupled with the fact that the season of tourists on Cape Cod has begun, and my free time has not been mine any longer.
The last two weeks of school are killer. There are about a million things the teachers want you to attend with the kids. Celebrations and presentations and half days and all of that lovely stuff. My regular sitter is not available during day time hours, so I was struggling with finding a new sitter so I could actually get to the gym on a regular basis. It was successful to a certain extent. The three days a week thing might be a little difficult- I haven't managed it once this summer to date, but we shall get some sort of routine by the time August rolls around and I have to switch the routine all over again!
During all of the craziness that is, I had to focus on this Paleo thing. I don't think I did too bad. It's not as hard as you think if you aren't going all sorts of organic (grass fed this and free range that). I tried...I bought the grass fed and the free range. I only do that when I find it though. I'm not going to make 15 stops to get something and drive 5 miles out of my way because they don't have the right thing in the store I am currently in. My family devours a hen house in about a month, so organic chicken also gets a little pricey. As time went on, I learned what stores carried what ingredients and began to have my pantry and spice cabinet stocked with things that are frequently used on the diet. I also *gasp* experimented with stuff. I didn't get too bad at it. If I screwed up, I usually just pulled out some bacon and added that. Everything tastes better with bacon. Eventually, I found myself cooking some bacon JUST so I could have the grease to cook my vegetables in to make them taste better.
On June 29 we did the baseline workout again. It was HOT out! Unfortunately, I was a little off in days and I thought we were going to do the baseline on July 2. SO- I had a BBQ the night before that did not bode well for my performance on Friday. I dropped :43 from my time-really wish I had dropped a minute, but it just wasn't in me on Friday. I'm going to hold on to this baseline workout and see how it goes in another month or two. I think I'll use this as a performance measurement. I increased my assisted pull-ups from 6 to 10 and my strict push-ups from 13 to 21. Not too shabby.
The numbers got a little fun. I was psyched. FINALLY-I have lost some weight. Fourteen pounds (or 7.5% of my body weight)! In addition, I lost an inch in my thighs and and inch on my arms-both places a girl wants to lose the inches! My waist measurement didn't really go anywhere, but I think I might have sucked my waist in when I was first measured-someone else was doing the measurement. I think it was a little off for that reason and I did lose an inch or two in the waist. My pants are a little more loose there, that's for sure.
All in all, I was pretty pleased. My athletic performance continues to need improvement. When it comes to CrossFit- I am not fast. Gives me something to continue to strive for. I am hooked on the Paleo thing. Partially because I did so well. Partially because now I am afraid of going back to any sort of junk food because: 1) I love it too much 2) I fear the rubber band effect and the weight gain when you go back to "normal" eating. James wants a cheat meal. I haven't cheated yet. I don't know if I want to- is that weird?
The last two weeks of school are killer. There are about a million things the teachers want you to attend with the kids. Celebrations and presentations and half days and all of that lovely stuff. My regular sitter is not available during day time hours, so I was struggling with finding a new sitter so I could actually get to the gym on a regular basis. It was successful to a certain extent. The three days a week thing might be a little difficult- I haven't managed it once this summer to date, but we shall get some sort of routine by the time August rolls around and I have to switch the routine all over again!
During all of the craziness that is, I had to focus on this Paleo thing. I don't think I did too bad. It's not as hard as you think if you aren't going all sorts of organic (grass fed this and free range that). I tried...I bought the grass fed and the free range. I only do that when I find it though. I'm not going to make 15 stops to get something and drive 5 miles out of my way because they don't have the right thing in the store I am currently in. My family devours a hen house in about a month, so organic chicken also gets a little pricey. As time went on, I learned what stores carried what ingredients and began to have my pantry and spice cabinet stocked with things that are frequently used on the diet. I also *gasp* experimented with stuff. I didn't get too bad at it. If I screwed up, I usually just pulled out some bacon and added that. Everything tastes better with bacon. Eventually, I found myself cooking some bacon JUST so I could have the grease to cook my vegetables in to make them taste better.
On June 29 we did the baseline workout again. It was HOT out! Unfortunately, I was a little off in days and I thought we were going to do the baseline on July 2. SO- I had a BBQ the night before that did not bode well for my performance on Friday. I dropped :43 from my time-really wish I had dropped a minute, but it just wasn't in me on Friday. I'm going to hold on to this baseline workout and see how it goes in another month or two. I think I'll use this as a performance measurement. I increased my assisted pull-ups from 6 to 10 and my strict push-ups from 13 to 21. Not too shabby.
The numbers got a little fun. I was psyched. FINALLY-I have lost some weight. Fourteen pounds (or 7.5% of my body weight)! In addition, I lost an inch in my thighs and and inch on my arms-both places a girl wants to lose the inches! My waist measurement didn't really go anywhere, but I think I might have sucked my waist in when I was first measured-someone else was doing the measurement. I think it was a little off for that reason and I did lose an inch or two in the waist. My pants are a little more loose there, that's for sure.
All in all, I was pretty pleased. My athletic performance continues to need improvement. When it comes to CrossFit- I am not fast. Gives me something to continue to strive for. I am hooked on the Paleo thing. Partially because I did so well. Partially because now I am afraid of going back to any sort of junk food because: 1) I love it too much 2) I fear the rubber band effect and the weight gain when you go back to "normal" eating. James wants a cheat meal. I haven't cheated yet. I don't know if I want to- is that weird?
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