Marshall Ramsey

It’s Fit2Fat2Fit Book Club Friday.  This week’s book is The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do by Charles Duhigg . I loved it. It’s a well written and accessible book with dozens of interesting case studies and stories as examples. Duhigg’s premise is that we’re governed by habits. Habits that make our brain’s job easier. (for example: Driving a car becomes a habit. Could you imagine how tired you’d be if you had to concentrate every mile you drove? When was the last time you thought about brushing your teeth?) And the really good news is that habits can be changed. First, you have to figure out what cues make you perform a certain habit. Does stress make you eat sweets or smoke? Does anxiety lead you to the bottle? What can you do to replace the bad habit when you feel the cue coming on?  There are also important habits called Keystone Habits. By changing one Keystone Habit, you can change your life. One of my Keystone Habits is getting up every more and doing PLS training.  And according to the book, it’s easier to change a habit if you have a group who will hold you accountable (the book uses AA as an example).  For me, my group is my PLS line.  There are cues (seeing my running shoes setting by my bed.). Rewards (being thinner and the endorphins).  My bad habits still exist (drinking Cokes and being lazy). But my new habits are now stronger, making the bad habits fade into the background. Good habits help strengthen will power, which will spill over into your life. If you work out, you won’t want to eat junk food. Or smoke. Or drink. You learn how to focus on a goal.

Take a hard look at your life and see where you need improvement. Find one or two keystone habits and then watch other areas of your life change.  I highly recommend the book. ***** out of five stars.

Today’s workout started with eight minutes on the treadmill.  I did 7.0, 7.5 and 8.0 mph.  Then we ran, did pushups, did step ups with weight, ran suicides, did Supermans, ran Gauntlets with 25-lb. weights.  It was a tough day — mainly because it was the end of the week. I’ve been on the road all week but managed to make every workout.

It’s a habit. And a darn good one.

There is a time of reckoning in all our lives. Lorna Luft

It was our own little mini time of reckoning today — we weighed in. I figured I might go up in weight. But I didn’t.  I lost another pound.  That means I’m now down 12 in nine weeks. And I have another 10 to lose.  My goal is to weigh 200 lbs.

Today I weigh 210 pounds.  I’m 6’1″ tall and have a size 34 waist.  I’m overweight according to my BMI index (28) but mainly because I have packed on more muscle than I normally carry.  I can run 15 miles and survive a 1-hour PLS workout in line one.  If I’m not in the best shape of my life, I’m darn close.

I thought about that while pushing a towel across a sticky JSU basketball court.  That would have killed me two years ago.  I enjoyed it today. I thought about it as I was skipping rope.  I used to not be able to skip rope. I thought about it as I was running 8 mph on the treadmill. Couldn’t do that two years ago either. The workout has gone from a chore to a challenge. I enjoy a challenge a lot more.

My next goal, a goal I’ve taken on for Lent, is to clean up my diet. I travel and am tired, so the temptation to eat junk for quick energy is there.  I have to quit that.  I need the energy. That’s the next level I’m striving for.

I don’t believe in diets. I believe in life changes. It’s time to make another life change in my life. And it will start with what I cram into my pie hole.

Ten pounds in three weeks.  That’s a pretty lofty goal.

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. 

I worked out on Fat Tuesday (yesterday) to avoid being fat. I worked out this morning (Ash Wednesday), to postpone being ash.

Death is coming. It could be here today. Or I could live to 100. My ticket could be punched any day. But until that day comes, I will strive to be in the best shape I possibly can be. Because I want to be more than just alive —  I want to truly live. And being fit and healthy is a key component of living.

That said, I worked-out on three and a half hours sleep this morning.  I got in late from Oxford last night and the alarm came early. I’m as smart a squash this morning. But I went to the gym anyway.  I leaned on my line mates to pull me through. And they did. I didn’t want to let them down. And they lifted me up.

There were a lot of burpees and mountain climbers.  We ran a lot, too.  I ran 8.0 mph on the treadmill and could taste the Red Bull I drank last night (that stuff is like poisonous cough syrup — but better than hitting a tree or bridge embankment). I sweated poison through my veins.

But I did it.  Because exercise is now more than a habit — It’s part of my life.

And it will be until I am ash again.

We started with running a giant nipple drill (not as sensual as it sounds), then we ran ladders, sprints and the Gauntlet. We jumped on the treadmill (8 minutes at 7.5 mph) and then finished with a bear-crawl drill in one of the aerobic rooms. It was a heart-pumping, lung burning workout.

Most people think of workouts as just a physical activity. But there is a real mental component to it also.  Fatigue makes you mentally weak. It allows things to get inside your head.  We are like oranges — you can tell what’s inside of us when we are squeezed.

I’ve been squeezed a lot the past three years.  I have a lot more work to do.

Live for something bigger than yourself and set lofty goals. That will help you keep perspective on the bad days.

I was there today and worked my butt off. Other than that, I have nothing else to say.