Just being alive isn't living

This post is going to be a mixed bag of different stuff.

First off, I've been following the story of a tracker and her family dealing with the terminal illness of her daughter Jonnae. On June 9th, Jonnae succumbed to her illness after a battle that lasted several years. This one hit close to home for me, because I have a family member that was diagnosed with the same illness nearly ten years ago. Fortunately, treatment for him was successful, and we have a very different story to tell. That being said, it is with us every day, and you never again feel comfortable about it.

I also came across this post yesterday. I wholeheartedly agree with her sentiments.

We spend far too much of our lives just existing instead of thriving. We have received the gift of life, and we should cherish that gift. For all of the Jonnaes out there...and for ourselves... it is our obligation to live in a way that makes our short time on this earth worthwhile. We should push ourselves and care for ourselves. We should challenge ourselves daily. We should focus on the good in our lives and let go of the bad. We will all have ups and downs. It is how we deal with these things...the downs in particular...that defines who we are and how we will be remembered. I feel a little silly reading the story of Jonnae and her family and how they dealt with her illness, and then thinking about some of the silly things I let affect me in a negative way, and how I let that affect others around me. I don't want to live like that any more.

Crossfit WOD

Ten rounds for time of:
12 Burpees
12 Pull-ups

Total time was 27:44

This was a great metcon workout...and those pullups got pretty damned tough. I'll skip back on my Tuesday UBWO this week for sure.

Cardio in the morning

It was stuffy and hot in the gym this morning. I couldn't tell whether my struggle running was due to that or due to the fact that I don't run in the morning anymore. I didn't like it much today. Not at all...but I did it. HIIT cardio. I'm pleased I got it in.

Watch that form!

My back is okay today, feeling just the slightest bit tender. I'm lucky. I think I had some form problems on deadlifts yesterday. The funny thing is, I was trying so hard to make sure that I didn't start changing the angle of my back until I had completed my hip extension on the lift that I held the back angle too long, into the quad extension. Finally, at the end of the movement, I changed back angle. It was too late at that point, and it strained my back a bit.

I should have known I was screwing it up, because they just didn't feel right. Anyway, I'll have to watch that next time I do deadlifts.

I'm juggling my schedule just a bit for the next few days. I'll do my UBWO today, and cardio tomorrow. I'll do cardio on Monday and UBWO agin on Tuesday. It will work better with the rest of my schedule.

LBWO today

My lower back is a bit tender today. After those back extensions doing Michael, squats, deadlifts and stiff leg deadlifts today caused my back to protest a bit. My form was good. I just overdid it a bit. I should reserve Michaels for Thursdays in the future.

Food clean again.

Michael today

My time was 23:54, which is 12 seconds slower than my record, but 1:45 better than my time two weeks ago. After my shower, Mr. Pukie was in the general area, but luckily he didn't come knocking at my door. I'm very happy with my workout today.

Michel is:

Three rounds for time of:
Run 800 meters
50 Back Extensions
50 Sit-ups

Food is squeaky clean today.

Two posts in one

I did some sprints over the weekend. I really do need to do them more often. When you jog all the time, you almost "forget" how to sprint all out. The body just isn't accustomed to doing it anymore. As kids, we spend our days running all over the place playing games. Now, I need to train myself to do that again. At least once per week, I'm doing some sprints.

I had a very good UBWO today. I went a bit heavier than last week, and feel good. I want to make progress, not stagnate.

Food....starved for most of Saturday, pigged out on Sunday. Not good. Today is better.