CrossFit Linchpin, Nutrition, Rucking and More

I'm sitting here on a day off, temps are about 17 degrees outside, a balmy 20 degrees north of what it was only 48 hours ago, and I have the itch to write a few thoughts so here it is...and yes, it's about fitness, "CrossFit," etc.

Nearly 8 months ago, I signed up for CrossFit Linchpin and began following the programming of Pat Sherwood, a former Navy SEAL, owner of CrossFit Linchpin and current CrossFit Health staff. I have written twice before and most recently, at the 4 month point. You can read the first post here and the 4 month update here.

Not much has changed, really. Since the 4 month update, Pat has added more value to the $10 monthly price-tag by adding in a "limited equipment option" every single day...that being 5 out of 7 days a week. (Thursdays and Sundays are rest days) A pair of dumbbells, a pull-up bar, a jump rope, and a set of gymnastic rings to hang from that pull-up bar. That's it for the limited equipment option and believe me, those folks often get far more "brutality," courtesy of those dumbbells, than those of us with all the gear in our garages or boxes. Plus, coming up in a month or so, he's adding an additional option of nutrition and the macro feature on Beyond the Whiteboard (BTWB) for probably $10 more. I won't be using that as I already am very happy with my nutrition game and right where I'm at but it'll be a great feature for so many who don't track what they eat. Hear me when I say: "NUTRITION IS EVERYTHING." You can work out without end and will NEVER yield the results you could if you got your nutrition squared away. I'm proof of that...in my mid-40s!

This winter has been fairly normal with warmer-than-usual days and then this past week, we had the "Polar Vortex" that dropped windchills into the negative mid-twenties and a high around minus 1. That's the coldest the garage has ever been and we actually brought in the dumbbells the night prior to warm up then did the limited equipment option in the living room which consisted of front squats with the dumbbells on our shoulders and dumbbell snatches. You see? No excuses for cold, etc. On most days, I head out early, turn on the baby space heater and prop up anything metal that we'll be using in front of the heater to warm it up like barbells, dumbbells or kettlebells. It works pretty good. One thing is for sure: no day is too cold to be out there. I NEED it and it's not for any narcissistic reason. The expenditure of calories, the pushing myself into uncomfortable, striving to do my best against myself...I need it for my dang sanity. Fitting in my never-before size 30 shorts is just icing on the cake. It's not the reason. Honestly, it's the nutrition that keeps those fitting, not my morning grind. I know my "why"...do you? Until you do, you'll always find an excuse.

You can always find a way to do what's important to you.

As for nutrition, it's on point! If you recall, I hired a nutrition coach from January - March 2018, shed 5" and about 20lbs and then went on my own since then and I've maintained that loss. I weigh myself every single morning (that scale is my accountability partner), still weigh out my breakfast and lunch, and then make good choices for dinner and extend myself some grace here and there. I LOVE food and the occasional craft beer so if I can still maintain, do well in the garage, and enjoy some of life's awesomeness, then it's a win-win all the way around. I do focus on water a lot, always trying to surpass a gallon a day. I never touch soda/pop and shy far away from processed garbage, high fructose corn syrup, etc. Whole, delicious foods is what you'll see on my plate the majority of the time. It's working!

But it's not just CrossFit. That's 60-75min out of my day (although I admittedly think about it FAR more). Marjie "likes" CrossFit and she is an awesome partner out there. We have serious fun together! Honestly, we have fun doing just about anything together, to include grocery shopping at Aldi but out there, it's just awesome. But she doesn't "love" it like I do. What she DOES love is rucking. She doesn't care for the rucking events that involve a cadre unleashing havoc but simply covering distance under weight. In fact, we'll be doing the GORUCK 50 Mile Star Course in April down in Columbus, OH together. Along those lines, we now host a "Ruck-n-Brew" every month. We choose a location to ruck for about 90min, then head to a local craft brewery or watering hole that is known for a great lineup and enjoy time together. We've hosted 4 so far and they are a BIG hit! We make it super-inviting to newcomers, too. No PT, no log-carrying, or anything like that. We just cover distance (with a purpose!), socialize, share rucking "wisdom," then break bread together. It really is a great time and will continue. Further, there is a monthly rucking challenge page that we're paying attention to and will weave that in. Tomorrow night, for example, we're rucking 86 flights of stairs for the 86 firefighters lost in 2018. We've got a handful of folks showing up and honestly, if it were just us, we'd have fun!

Our last Ruck-n-Brew: Salt Run Trail in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park

We also stay involved with a nutrition coaching company dubbed "PLT Nutrition and Fitness" where Marjie continues to be coached. Paul, the owner, is actually the catalyst for how she first discovered the world of macros which eventually over a year later, turned me on to it to give it a try. Life-changing! Since then, our story has spread and countless others have joined the ranks with us. A fun thing I wake up to every morning these days is a monthly challenge. For January, it was called the Buns of Fire Challenge and rotated back and forth between lunges and squats. I typically weave them into my warmup or workout but if they don't fit, I just do them while the espresso is brewing at 3:15am. :) For February, it's a month full of burpees and pushups. Bring it! It's just a little thing that breeds more community at PLT and gets people moving if "sedentary" is their normal.

So that's it! Family is good, we continue to lead the marriage ministry at our church, we parent teenagers (gulp!), and I still get to put on the uniform every once in a while. I won't say "living my best life" because Marjie detests that but I will say that I'm doing my best to live a full life with the ones I love, heed the calling on my life, and live authentically.

Stay warm, friends!