DNF--and a little inspiration

Tonight's WOD was heavy on cardio, which at 5'2" and 255 pounds, I'm not really in any shape for AT ALL!!  Tonight was incredibly difficult, but I didn't give up, and I didn't leave the box in tears this time.

WOD #1:
10 ab-mat sit-ups, 20 Thrusters (I used 55#), 20 sit-ups, 16 Thrusters, 30 sit-ups, 12 Thrusters (I dropped to 45#), 40 sit ups, 8 Thrusters, 50 sit-ups (I only made it to #29 in the allotted 15 minute timeframe to complete the WOD), then 4 Thrusters.  My heart was racing so fast when I got "done" that I wasn't so certain about my ability to do WOD 2, but knew I had to try.

WOD #2:
8 rounds for time
10 box jumps, 10 kettle bell swings.

Shout out to Guanina Palermo-Pinckney for teaching me the trick of staring at the wall during box jumps and NOT looking at the box.  I always get overwhelmed just looking at the box and my fear gets the best of me. I got through my first 40 box jumps without a thought or a problem thanks to this little piece of advice!

I got through the first 4 rounds doing the jumps and then on #6 of the 4th round of jumps, I turned my ankle pretty bad.  It hurt something fierce!  For rounds 5 and 6 I did step-ups, rather than jumps, but I kept pushing.  There was no way I could finish the last 2 rounds, due to time or my ankle either one.  I didn't leave upset like I did the last time I didn't finish, I left proud.  I am proud of my continued efforts to go into the box and push my limits.  I am proud that I continue, even when it hurts, when my heart is racing and my mind is telling me that I should stop.  I am proud of all that the box is helping me to become, and not just in the sense of finishing workouts and building muscle.

Now for the inspiration part----I had read a post earlier today by one of our CrossFit members, Phillip Mason.  Phillip posted the following on his FB status today:  Today as I sit here I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year!!! I have had the best year of my life this last year I lost 76 POUNDS!! And I'm still going! This is the best shape that I have been in my life and I love it. There comes a point in your life when you say that it's time for a change!! Thank GOD this past year was when I drew a line in the sand and said NO MORE!! I will be a better person, I will forgive those who did me wrong, I will continue to be a better example for all around me who say its time for a change!! I only hope that my achievements will be a light for others who are fed up with where they are at, and they will too make their decisions to change themselves and their lifestyles!! Thanks to ALL MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY WHO HAVE SUPPORTED ME THROUGH THIS JOURNEY!! And also a big thanks to CrossFit APxfor helping become healthy and more physically fit!! 

I found this exciting since I have so much weight that I want to lose, and some very lofty goals for myself.  Just like most obese folks, when we hear of someone who has had this level of success, we ask the same questions.....You know the ones........How did you do it?  How long did it take?  Phillip told me he started really focusing on his weight in April of 2012.  He had made some small changes before that, but April 2012 is when he really started to focus on it.  This was really exciting for me to hear.  Why?  Because I would like to lose 100#.  Now, I'm not focusing on the numbers, but instead focusing on the things I have some control over, my workouts, and what I put into my mouth.  If I control these 2 things, I will see results on the scale in time.

In that vain, Barney was going to the store tonight and I gave him a list of things I needed him to buy me for breakfasts and lunches this week.  He gave me a look of concern because of the number of times I've attempted this, and failed.  The amount of healthy fruits and vegetables that have been purchased and gone bad in the fridge because the bad stuff was far easier and took less time.  I very calmly asked him to please trust me.  I need to make these changes, and I need him to trust me that I will continue this and be eating all of these foods.  I need to have healthy snacks available to eat during the day, so I don't eat things like chips and candy which are so available to me on a regular basis.  I have to be prepared to succeed, or I am planning to fail, basically.  So, I need to wrap up this blog post, go hard boil some eggs, clean and pack some salad for tomorrow, and cut up some carrots and cucumbers for my healthy snacks during the day.  Our Keurig came today, so I'm going to try all the different coffees that came as a sample until I find one that I can drink black, since cream and sugar aren't in the food plan.

Until next time...Krista

Inspiration on feet...

We have all heard about and felt an inspiration in various situations, forms, etc.  I am a member of a group of mom's on Facebook that are all runners at different places in our fitness journey.  Some of our mom's are Ironmen, and some of us have only completed a couple of 5k's.  The one truth I have found in this group is that these women are a huge support system for each other, they are proud of each other, they fight for and defend each other, and we are downright silly too.

Earlier this week, one of our running mom's posted a picture, and information about a friend of hers.  Here is the post she made:

 She is a long time asthma and allergy sufferer, with multiple collapsed lungs and multiple hospital stays her entire life. Long story short, she attempted Ironman last June and got pulled from the water at only 500 yards. Tough day. This year, she came back out, swam in the 52 degree lake, biked and made the bike cutoff by 10 minutes (including a tire that exploded) and ran her heart out on the marathon. We cheered her in with a WILD crowd as she made her way down the finishers chute, only to miss the midnight cutoff by 23 seconds. I truly have never felt so emotion during a race. She crossed the finish late but Mike Reilly (the voice of Ironman) called her back out to talk to her, gave her an enormous bouquet of flowers and one of the top males came out and put his medal around her neck. The media was ALL over her, and they allowed her to grab her sign and do a victory lap down the finishers chute and back through the finish. "Dear Asthma, I Win!" She truly is one of the most insertion people I know, and is an example every single day, that if you want something bad enough, nothing can stand in your way.
She is all over our papers/news and last night at the volunteer banquet they honored her, and had her come up to talk. She got a standing ovation from 3000+ volunteers.

Well, today, Paula posted a link to the video showing this awesome feat of athleticism.  I don't know that I have ever been so impressed and inspired.  This woman is the stuff dreams and legends are made of.  I can't help but feel that if she can finish an Ironman with the severe asthma that she has, I can get in shape and finish the Princess Half Marathon.  I would love to meet this woman and shake her hand.  

• Here is a link to the Youtube video of her finishing.  I don't care if she finished 23 seconds after the midnight deadline, she is an Ironman.  The 2nd most inspirational person in this video is the man that volunteered to give her his medal.  If I heard the video correctly, I think they said that they had already given her a medal.  I also noticed that when I was watching it and they had her made another trip down the finisher's chute, it was almost 10 minutes past the midnight deadline, and there hadn't been another finisher come by.  

Disclaimer---if you have a tendency to cry, get some tissues ready:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndY9xptZI9w&feature=plcp