Good morning, afternoon and evening. Who knows when you’ll be reading this. But here I am. TEN WEEKS IN… and SIX whole years for CrossFit and CrossFit Boom. I’ve been around for a while. And although, at my current state of fluff, you’d take one look at me and not believe it’s been 6 years, but believe me it has been that long. Once upon a time, I was more fit. Once upon a time, I would have called myself small. I AM on my way back. I haven’t invested in myself continuously like I should have been. But it’s true. This month marks my SIXTH year with the Boom Box. And now I’m in my TENTH week of my new journey. The tenth week of investing in myself physically and mentally.

Ten weeks ago, I was so pissed off at myself at how much I had let myself go, that I decided right then and there, “NO MORE!” Ten weeks ago, I scolded myself for not starting this journey a year ago, so when I hit 40 I’d be all fabulous and fit. Ten weeks ago, I was on the edge of 200 lbs at 199 lbs. For my 5’3 self that’s no bueno! Ten weeks ago, I poured my heart out to y’all and said I’d had enough and change was a comin’.

And slowly but surely, the past 10 weeks have proven fruitful! And when I say slow, it’s been real sloooooowwwwww. But I’m not a spring chicken and that’s to be expected. To bad my brain is taking a while to accept that fact.

In this ten weeks, I’ve had some wins and some fails. I’ve made good decisions and bad decisions. But most importantly I’ve stayed committed and I keep on grinding. And I’m looking forward to the next 10 weeks.

I’m almost 15 lbs down. And I’m down on the inches. 11.5 inches to be exact, well close to exact. It is just me with a tape measure. But it’s dang close if not more!

If I was really gung-ho and super strict, I’d be even more pounds down, but that’s not my life. And it’s not the life of a good percentage of folks. There are lots of distractions, emergencies and last-minute things. You just have to do your best to minimize the damage. I’m still working on that. I pretty much know ahead of time when I will miss a workout. But my lazy ass still doesn’t do anything to make up for it. Eat less for that day?!?! It’s not a terrible solution but the best solution would be to pick up the kettlebell in my garage. Or the barbell. Or hell, even take a walk around the neighborhood. But that’s something I have to work on, in a bad way. Maybe you do too. Maybe we can challenge each other to do one thing outside of our normal routine to push ourselves that little extra bit. Who’s in?

As for getting it done in the workouts that are part of my schedule, I can’t be more thankful for the COMMUNITY I have at CrossFit Boom. I know, I know, you’re tired of my love letters to my people. But gosh darn it, they are the best. It doesn’t necessarily take a village to find your way to a fitter, healthier life. You can do it all on your own. But it sure does help to have a village!

And that is why for 6 years, I keep on keepin’ on. Some may say it’s a waste of money because, well look at me… I’m 40 years old. I’m not in shape. I’ve been going to the same place for so long. Clearly it’s not working. Well folks, it only works if you do the right things. Give FULL and INTENSE EFFORT and EAT right! If you’re 20 years old, there’s a good chance you can half-ass it, drink beer all day, eat taco bell 3x a day, and still be fit. But as you get older that shit don’t work no more! I tried!

I’m doing pretty ok with the food. Still sticking with boring but it’s working! Now I’m focusing on my workouts. Giving it my all. Zeroing in on my weaknesses. I’m still terrible. And I still cry. And I still want to quit. But then there’s my people. My BOOM Box peers. All ages, all colors, all levels of fitness. We all have the same goal. And we all suffer and succeed at the same workout. The weight on the barbell will vary. The level of skill will vary. But we are all doing the same work. As individuals, as partners… as teams. Sometimes our workouts are for time and some will finish many minutes before others. But they stick around and encourage us slower folks. Sometimes our workouts are for a certain time but total reps. Our fittest person may finish with 100 more reps than me. But we both gave our all in the 10 or 20 minutes that was asked of us. And we pushed to our last rep. And one day, I will do 100 more reps too.

It’s encouraging to see the person I could be in the fitter folks. It’s encouraging to see the new person do things they’ve never done and find out they are stronger than they ever knew. It’s encouraging to see someone hit a PR or learn a new skill. It makes me want to work a little harder. Try one more time. Stay a little extra to work on something.

In just this past week, I’ve had a newer member push my ass to run. I wanted to walk. She said, “Let’s just go until we can’t go no more.” Clearly, she is tougher than me, but I listened to her. I went till I couldn’t go anymore. Then after a little bit of walking, she said, “OK, let’s start running at the fire hydrant.” I said, “OK.” And we did. I had more run than walk that day.

I’ve had Britt tell me to do 5 more wall balls. I don’t wanna. But I gotta. She knows I will put the ball down. She knows I don’t want to pick it back up. She gives me a countdown. I don’t have to listen to her. But if I don’t, then why am I here? So I wait for the 3, 2, 1 and go. Just 5 more reps.

I have Sandra who tells me I’m looking slim even though I have so far to go! I LOVE YOU! And she killed the rope climbs. Got her first climb in. Look out world, she’s coming for you.

I have Connie who actually agreed to be my partner even though there’s running involved. She’s doomed but she still agrees join me.

I have Tory who will go out on an extra run after she’s done, cause she knows it’s my least favorite. And I know she wants to add a little extra to her day.

I have Amy who tells me that maybe my blog encouraged her to show up. She has no idea that rocks my world! I have Derrick who asks me when my next post is coming. That again, ROCKS my world. I would write just for me. But if it’s for someone else, then hell ya, I’m gonna write some more!

I have Myrna and Mel who I don’t see regularly, but they post frequently in my Stronger than Yesterday, women’s facebook group. They check-in. They keep me on my toes. They boost me up.

There are so many of y’all that push me. Encourage me. Inspire me. If you didn’t get a shout out, it’s not because I don’t love you. These are the folks that have seriously and directly impacted me recently.

I also have coaches that encourage, cheer, and support not just me, but everybody! Lizzy, will tell you that you can do something and seriously wait til you do it. Travis, who I give most grief to, doesn’t give up on me and helps me with my weight loss goals. Marcus, he’s got jokes, but he wants us all to work hard and start GAINZIN’. Tara and Lacy, two peas in a pod and energizer bunnies who bring laughter and smiles no matter how grueling the workout. And GRANT…. the OG of coaches. I’m the sister he never wanted. I’ve watched him grow CrossFit Boom. I was one of the first members. Without him, I wouldn’t still be doing CrossFit. CrossFit is more than being FIT, although it’s a good perk. It’s not a cult but it’s a community. CrossFit Boom – It’s a family. I love them all.

And that’s that.