I figured if Meg can do posts like this, then maybe I should try one! Disclaimer: mine probably aren’t going to be as funny/good as hers, but I’m going to give it a shot!
1. I need more sleep
This week has been rough. I’ve heard a lot of people complaining about Daylight Savings Time, and I really don’t like complaining about it because it happens every year people! Get over it! But, for whatever reason, this year it has hit me harder and I’ve been playing catch-up on my sleep all week. It has resulted in me missing CrossFit and CrossFit Endurance (CFE) on Monday, and me skipping CrossFit and my CFE class today too! That has guaranteed that I’m not going to hit my March goal of 5 CrossFit classes and 2 CFE classes each week, as now I can only get to 4 CF and 1 (MAYBE 2) CFEs this week. But I don’t regret sleeping in – I have been dragging this week!
Stanley doesn’t like Daylight Savings Time either!
2. I might be getting sick
I never get sick. I have taken 1 sick day in over 4 years, and the last time I was seriously sick was right after we got engaged (foreshadowing?). But the last few days I have been feeling more nauseous, congested, and just groggy. I think it might have to do with my sleep issue, or maybe my sickness is causing me to feel more tired? Either way, I haven’t been feeling great lately, but I’m hoping I can fight it off before it actually knocks me out of commission.
The last time I was really sick – two days after I proposed to Meg!
3. I’m becoming a coffee snob
For a while I stopped drinking coffee during my Lurong Paleo challenge, but since then I’ve decided to reintroduce it to my diet in moderation. Unfortunately, I no longer drink the coffee at work. To be polite, the coffee at work tastes like medieval swill combined with laundry water. I used to drink it because I needed the caffeine, but now that I don’t need the caffeine I’ve become more of a coffee snob. I had a bunch of gift cards to Starbucks that have lasted me this far, but now that I’ve run out I’m in a quandary, because I don’t want to spend $2-3 a pop for a cup of coffee. So, today, I brought our french press to work, and I’m going to keep it here. Yes, I’m going to be that guy who brews coffee in his office using a french press. I’m not ok with this yet, but I’m also not ok with setting up a new savings account to get Starbucks on the mornings where I go to work from the gym (other mornings I just brew coffee at home first).
The french press on a filing cabinet in my office. Maybe I should turn the area into a coffee bar? Get some coffee mugs, coasters, napkins, etc.?
4. I love floor hockey
I’ve written before about my love of team sports, and in particular my floor hockey league, but I just have to reiterate how much fun it is. We started our new season two weeks ago, and I am the captain of one of the eight teams in the league. I’m really happy with how my team looks so far, and I truly believe we have the best chance I’ve had so far to win the championship (so far, in the 4 prior seasons, I have 2 playoff wins. I’m only marginally better than Tony Romo). But I don’t love floor hockey just because I have a good team – I play with such a great group of guys. For a small league run through a local YMCA, we have a lot of commitment to this league. I write a weekly column analyzing the teams and breaking down stats. Someone keeps stats every night. One of our league members owns his own photography business, and he did portraits of all of the players. Another guy is a graphic designer and designed our t-shirts and is creating customized team logos for playing cards. Another guy is a software developer and has created our own website (still under some construction). And lots of other guys spend their own personal time contributing to various aspects of the league. Is it silly how involved we are in floor hockey? Yes. But it also makes this league special, and something I truly look forward to.
My portrait this season, taken by Kurt Brownell (http://www.kurtbrownell.com/)
5. I can’t get enough team sports
See above. But seriously, in any given week I’m playing basketball twice a week, floor hockey once, and ultimate frisbee once. And I really want to try to get some pick up football games going again. I just love team sports. I have no idea why I’m so infatuated with them, but I honestly believe I would play them 7 days a week if I could. Even CrossFit workouts, when done as a team, are just more fun and interesting to me. Last Saturday I did a “partner WOD” where we were set up in teams of 2 to complete the workout. It happened to play to two of my strengths: kettlebell swings and rowing (the third component, sadly, was wall balls and I hated every second of that torture). My partner and I posted the best score of our class, and I am always more proud/more motivated when I’m working as a team than I am individually. Maybe that is why I hate running so much?
My team this season, the Redhawks! Taken by Kurt Brownell (http://www.kurtbrownell.com/)
6. I hate being humbled
I’ll be honest – I’ve been feeling pretty full of myself lately with my athletic accomplishments. Between playing ultimate and actually being decent, to finishing toward the top of my class a few times at CrossFit, I’ve been feeling a little cocky. The beginning of the CrossFit Open should have humbled me a little, but I turned it into an opportunity to gloat about how far I’ve come. Well, yesterday morning was a cruel reminder that I’m not as awesome as I thought I was. The funny thing about CrossFit is that it has the incredible ability to either make you feel good about yourself (like when you PR) or to completely crush you into the ground. Yesterday’s workout had 3 movements, 2 of which I’m terrible at: box jumps and thrusters. Let’s just say it wasn’t a good workout for me, and I was absolutely gassed at the end of it, and still had one of the lowest scores. Then I went to play basketball afterward, and had more turnovers than points. By a lot. It is good to be reminded that I’m not the best thing since bottled beer, but it is still a painful lesson.
I don’t think I was the only one humbled by the WOD yesterday, it was “Rahoi” – a hero WOD. (Photo by Aaron Smykowski at FCCF http://www.flowercitycrossfit.com)
7. I really don’t understand protein powder
I understand the benefits – and I’m big on using it now because I’ve noticed that my recovery is much better when I have protein immediately following a workout. But there are so many different choices! There’s whey and soy, there’s isolate, casein, blends, combinations, and words that are really long that I can’t pronounce. There are a million different brands, all claiming to be the best. And it seems like everybody I talk to swears by the powder that they use – but they’re all different! I just don’t know which ones to trust, which ones are good and which are bad, or if it really doesn’t matter at all. I know Progenex is often the CrossFit protein supplement of choice, but at almost twice as expensive as alternatives, it’s hard for me to justify buying that brand. It’s frustrating for me that I don’t know if I’m using the right supplement, and we’re in the midst of switching again (I just bought a new one that I think is making me feel more bloated!) Any advice out there?
Those are my Wednesday Ramblings. Not bad for my first one probably, but still not as good as Meg’s!
Bob
Meg
(Not As) Big Bob 