Day 56 - Weight 289.6 lbs. - The Final Countdown

I'll post a menu for the day but this is all about summing it up and making sense of what I've been doing.

You probably do not know what this means to me. I don't know if I'll have "won" or not. I'd like to, but it's not a big deal. The Big Deal is two-fold: one, the results drive me to continue the fight beyond the challenge, and two, I didn't quit. I've lost weight and gained muscle. I went through some crazy stuff. There were times that I wondered if I should continue. I had to walk step by step forward in faith until the light broke as I passed through tunnel after tunnel, until I hit The Zone. I wanna ride it forever. I can honestly say that I'm never going back.

It's the 'not quitting thing' that really rocks me. I usually quit. It's what I do, or have done, anyway. There are times when you run out of steam, or life gets in the way, or you just have to make a tough decision others may disagree with, but I did my best to avoid excuses and walk this out to the end. I thank God I did, because I'm in a whole new world now. Special thanks to Cheryl, John, and all my friends at CrossFit as well as everyone else who's given me endless encouragement, and especially my wife Alice who has walked by my side this whole time--so much so that she's a CrossFit girl herself now.

When it hurts, when you're scared, when what's happening to you can't be easily explained but it's bad, when you smell the bear scat and hear the rustling, when the territory is virgin and you've only got 18 rounds left in the magazine with no food, there are no excuses and you gotta dig deep. And I have finally discovered that I can do that. I haven't reached the depths or gone as far as I think I can, but I can see it and taste it now. It's real.

My old trainer Tom, who took me on a powerful but perhaps ill-advised hike of Giant Mt. in the Adirondacks (a High Peak) several years ago, told me something similar: The mountain doesn't care. It just "is." You can make it down, you can fall and die, you can cry or laugh, but the mountain doesn't care.

I needed that.

So now, armed with this truth, will I keep up the good work or do what I have so often done in the past--that is, feel good about the accolades and then drop out? I'm gonna keep going. It'll be less strict in some ways, stricter in others, and I'll keep my mind open to more learning because remaining teachable is one of the most important things in life.

I will also be going out to eat sometime soon. Sushi, anyone? I'm gonna plow down as much raw tuna, whitefish, squid, octopus, salmon, and cooked eel as will fit into my tummy. Each comes sleeping on its own bed of rice, secured by wasabi glue and perhaps a bit of seaweed, waiting to be dipped into a mixture of soy sauce and wasabi just before going into the front end of the energy factory.

Today has been spent cooking and relaxing. My knee is iffy and a tad swollen inside and I'm concerned about the Monday night WOD, but I'll live. I wanted to make sure we're ready for a good week because I suspect this coming weekend will, as I mentioned, involve restuarant eating. And I have benchmark WODs to hit this week.

Praise God. In the name of Jesus, I press on, gratefully.

Menu
Breakfast (4 blocks)
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt, 1/4 cup cottage cheese, 1 HB egg, 1 cup strawberries, 1 cup green beans
- 1/2 cup blackberries, 1/2 tsp. olive oil, 15g chopped nuts

Snack (1 block)
- 1 oz. chicken, 1/2 tsp. coconut oil, 2/3 cup strawberries

Lunch (4 blocks)
- 2 cups Chan chili, 1 apple

Snack (4 blocks)
- 8 Tricia meatballs, 1/2 cup sauce, 1 tbsp. c-raisins

Dinner (5 blocks)
- 6 oz. paleo meatloaf, 1 cup green beans, 1/2 tsp. butter,


Total water consumption: 9+ quarts throughout the day, including coffee and tea

It's all good! Based on the rules and all that, my total points for the day: 0

Total points so far: 28