Candotujuh – the ReDo in 2009

Though my good friend Andy didn’t pose the question again this year, I think it a more than worthwhile endeavor to review the year past, reflecting on what was achieved, what wasn’t, and what the plan for next year is, as his questions inspired me to do last year.

In theory, the original commitment was supposed to be year-long effort to make major changes. Probably that was a bad theory. Really this project is about lifestyle changes, and those cannot and should not last only a year, lest the entire process need to be revisited, again. That is, these are lifestyle changes, for life.

Therefore, I am happy to be carrying on the project and the blog. In some ways, that’s an indicator of success. But, it is probably also an indicator that there is plenty of room to continue to improve, certainly many goals not yet attained.

Last year, I said I wanted to hit 115 kg (250 lbs) and run a marathon in 2008. Neither of these happened, and I am disappointed in myself about that. I completed a half-marathon, and I suppose that is emblematic of the year. Good stuff, but not as good as I would have liked it to have been. Though the year, I had some periods of lackadaisicalness and lots of bad nutritional decisions. Another indicator is this blog – in 2007 I averaged a post nearly every week but in 2008 it was barely more than once a month. My weight is basically the same as last December, which is both good and bad. Bad in that I didn’t achieve the reductions I had aspired to. Good in that it didn’t increase, and – though I don’t have clinical data to prove it – I feel confident that my body composition improved. Without doubt, I am stronger than I was a year ago, my lifts have been consistently heavier than they were a year ago. I have a resting pulse in the 50s and excellent blood pressure numbers too, which are good indicators of good cardiovascular condition. But, my tickers is still pumping blood to lots of mass that it shouldn’t have to support, it only seems logical that’s not good in the long run. Also, my knees and joints would supremely benefit from less load.

I have mentioned the influence of Crossfit numerous times in previous posts. Among the primary concepts are the hierarchy of physical development being rooted in nutrition and the effectiveness of anaerobic exercise. Neither of these, of course, are new revelations. There is an old quote that I cannot fully recall that says something to the effect that good advice is not worthwhile in its novelty but its function as a reminder. You can check out page 2 and page 8 for elaborations in Crossfit Journal preview for the concepts I am talking about.

At any rate, my revised plan is to focus less on marathon workouts, and more attention on intensity in workouts and dedication to more systematic, dedicated nutrition. Specifically, the Crossfit regime espouses “Paleo” dieting for quality; that is, if you didn’t eat it as a caveman (because it didn’t exist), don’t eat it now. And “Zone” for quantity control through the ‘block’ system to control ratios of macronutrients and overall caloric intake. Certainly the greater challenge for me will be the latter; I have done well the last couple year in eating relatively healthy food, it’s just been too much of it.

Anyway, that’s the plan. In the short run, fat and happy is true. But, that doesn’t work in the long run. The ramp down on caloric intake will involve some grumpiness, compulsions to cheat, and occasional wavering commitment. However, the science is unmistakable. And the timetables are irrefutable: you can do thousands of calories damage in just one sitting of much less than hour, but it takes hours of intense work to burn off those same calories. Add job, family, and travel – you just have to make good decisions on the input side or you’ll never get ahead because there just aren’t enough hours in the day.

Therefore, I am happy to set for the plan for Candotujuh – the ReDo in 2009. Wish me luck. I welcome your support. And, I encourage anyone out there of thinking of making his or her own big New Year’s resolution to give it try. I have devoted most of this posting to talking about shortcomings and areas to be improved. But, overall, I feel much better than I did two years ago. The timing is arbitrary, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is making changes to improve yourself, your quality of live, and perhaps quantity of life.

Happy New Year! Best wishes for 2009.