The 2011 challenge... a month or so later

Who says the challenges in life need to start January 1?

So far this year I've tried the following:
January: no grain and no added sugar
January - March: experiment in training for a 1/2 marathon
February: Try again for no grains and no added sugar

Yep, that first January thing....ambushed by New York City. And loved it. Who wouldn't love to try cupcakes and donuts and m&m's and south african food and GOOD GOD! so much FOOD in that city!!!! I feel so horrible here in Rocklin with the suburban choices we have.

However... February has been quite successful to the point I am going to continue to March 13, the race day. Why ambush your body 2 weeks before a race.

Speaking of the race... I feel absolutely scared. I've given my life to CrossFit Endurance training which basically doesn't advocate long runs. It's based more on short run at maximum effort. Needless to say my anerobic capacity has most likely improved. But will it translate into a 13 mile run? I know everyone says, "But you ran that before." ONCE... just ONCE.

It's a mental block.

Meanwhile, while not eating sugar or grains, I don't think I've actually lost any weight. I block this out because I believe the alternative of doing nothing or going back to my old eating habits are probably not going to get me anywhere.

So I plug away and along the way.... I've increased my max weight on squats and deadlifts. I got on the leader board twice in one week. I have my strengths and I have my areas of improvement but it's an amazing journey.

What will the next few months bring? I'm going to continue on the no grain and no sugar challenge. I've seen a major improvement in sleep over the last few weeks. I think I might even try no dairy for a week or so. See how that goes.

As the summer comes around I am thinking about taking up a sport. More to come.