Setting myself up for success

Today's Weigh-In: 210.4

I'm a week into my new cycle, and feeling pretty good. Even with eating bad food over the weekend (camping) I've lost 4 pounds in a week. I only got 2 training sessions in last week, because I wanted to limit my soreness on the weekend because I knew I would be doing some serious mountain biking. That worked out well, and allowed me to stay fresh and active while still cutting some weight.

This week I'm going to try to get all 5 training days in. I've also made a spreadsheet which allows me to track everything I want to do every day, and accrue point values for each good habit I develop. Right now I'm tracking things like recording daily weigh-ins, ounces of water consumed (shooting for 100oz./day not counting coffee or diet soda), doing mobility work for flexibility, and taking my supplements. I'm a sucker for points, so I think this will help me stay on track better than just juggling everything in my head. I'm thinking of adding other stuff to this checklist as well, such as flossing my teeth, but I want to focus on a few super-important things first, then add new things as good habits form around the old things. I even wrote my goal weight on a piece of paper (185) and stuck it to my cubicle wall to remind me not to settle for anything less than full achievement.

I'm finding myself really motivated right now, but I know that motivation doesn't last, so I have to use the drive I have right now to set myself up for success when I'm just not feeling it.

New training cycle

Today's Weigh-In: 214.6

Whoa, where did that come from? Well, in the last month I've really let my diet (and training, but to a lesser degree) slip. I was aware of it happening, but I just didn't really feel like doing anything about it. I guess I was just a bit burned out on the whole thing. This is probably a natural cycle, just part of the process, but it probably could have been managed better, or planned for. I hadn't planned any rest or deload weeks, so everything was kind of ad-hoc, and I don't thrive in that type of setup.

The good news is that I'm feeling quite motivated now, so today is officially Day 1 of my new training cycle. My training during the first half of the year was dedicated to increasing strength and performance in the Olympic lifts, while maintaining a good level of conditioning. I think I've accomplished this fairly well, although I was 10 pounds shy of my goals in both the Snatch and the Clean & Jerk. I still made great progress, though, especially considering my shoulder injury and the 6 week rehab I did on it.

The goal for the next 6 months is going to be a focus on losing body fat while increasing performance on Crossfit workouts. To do this I have to dial in my diet, sleep, recovery, and mobility. I need to lose weight to increase my performance in bodyweight movements like pull-ups and running. I need to get the correct amount of food that will allow me to train with maximum intensity while burning fat, and also avoid foods that are detrimental to performance, such and pro-inflammatory foods (grains, sugar, milk, vegetable oils). I need to get good sleep every day, so this means limiting caffeine and alcohol. And I need to be in the gym 5 days a week to maximize gains.

While this probably sounds like a lot, it's really not that far off from what I'm used to. I'm used to training 4 days a week, so adding another day isn't a big deal. I already know how to cook good food. I know what foods affect me negatively, and what foods I thrive on. I've built the base for this over the past 3 1/2 years, it's just time to put it all together and make a solid push towards excellence.

Oh, I almost forgot. What's my weight goal? Right now, it's 185 pounds, but ultimately it'll be whatever weight I find I perform most optimally at.