The Jasmine Challenge

So the Spartan Challenge has ended and I didn't really do it because of how crazy life has been lately. On Thursday, after Crossfit everybody was stretching, and somebody asked me about the Spartan Challenge and Crystal replied for me, "Jas is doing her own challenge."

She's right. This challenge lasts my whole life but is particularly important for the next year while I wait for Geoff to come home. Today's blog post is going to focus on the Jasmine Challenge for the next 6 weeks.

I am going to Arizona on August 8. That will mark then end of my challenge. Crystal will do my measurements and I will report my successes. Now for the goals!

1. 120-125

This is a weight goal. I know weight isn't everything. Fitness and health are more important and weight can be an inaccurate measurement if you are strong etc. That being said, a person who is only 5'2 even with muscle and curves should weigh between 115-125 (without muscle and curves, a 5'2 girl could easily be 100-110 and not look sickly). My current weight is 129. The weight I was before Geoff got home in May 2009 was 116. The weight I was when I got married in August 2009 (when this picture was taken) was about 122. As you can see, my weight slowly crept up over the year. In 6 weeks, I would like to lose 5-10 pounds. So when I leave for Arizona, I would like to be 120-125. I think this is reasonable but it's going to take discipline (which leads to the next goal).

2. 90% Paleo

More blogs on Paleo later. This means one cheat meal a week. I read the Paleo Diet book and the best idea it gave me was to try to stay at 100% and say no to temptation whenever possible. But if that 10% time is unavoidable, do it and don't hate yourself over it. This happened this week. I have been 90% Paleo for one week. Yesterday we were tubing all day and the group of people I was with wanted to stop at Taco Bueno. Although it's the opposite of Paleo, I had tortilla soup and a beef taco. I didn't even finish the soup though because I am not in a cheating mentality. But after a whole day of tubing (of which I was the one pulling the tubes and getting the exercise), I needed some sustenance.

3. Run, Yoga, and Crossfit at least once a week

I'm happy doing 4 days a week of Crossfit but I need balance in my life. I used to love running and be a lot better at it. I want to get there again. I also enjoy the challenge of yoga and the personal strength it gives you. Fitness, in my opinion, is being able to do a variety of activities well. This is my variety.

I have so many other goals. I would like to do a handstand push up (first I need to be able to get up on the wall unassisted), I would like to run a sub 8 minute mile again (first I need to set up a plan for this), I would like to be able to do Angie unassisted in sub 20 minutes (100 pushups, 100 squats, 100 pullups, 100 situps). I can do Angie RX but my hands tear too soon at the pull ups and the whole thing is thrown off. And I have a million personal goals (mostly to get a school law job and graduate with honors). Also, I'd like to become more proficient in Spanish. I bought Rosetta Stone Levels 1-5 and my goal is to complete it by the end of the year.

But this blog and my main focus for the next 6 weeks will be to complete the 3 big goals above. They all go hand in hand and they are all part of my "Jasmine Challenge."

No More Excuses

So I had some really good reasons to not be Paleo/Crossfitrific the past couple months. I had finals then a cruise in Europe then Geoff's family came to visit and finally the last few days with Geoff before he left for Afghanistan. I let my diet go and I prepared myself for the worst, telling myself that it was worth it. And it was....

But the reality is that I feel and function better when my diet and fitness is on track. It feels pretty ick to have gained 8 pounds in a month and a half. And it would feel amazing to drop those again. But right now I am just enjoying how good it fuels to put good food into my body.

This summer should be the summer of fitness. I have no more excuses. I live alone and have complete control over the contents of the fridge and pantry. I even did a "kitchen cleanse" with Crystal and we got rid of all the bad food. The only way to have bad food in my house now is if I actively go out and buy it. So the "Geoff excuse" is gone... I can't nibble pasta off his plate or end up eating huge unhealthy restaurant portions just because Geoff wanted to go out. Now it's all on me.

I also have an abundance of free time now to work on my fitness. No more missed classes! Okay, I don't necessarily have an abundance. I'm working 30 hours a week this summer, learning Spanish through Rosetta stone, and have some summer duties as Editor in Chief of The Texas Hispanic Journal of Law and Policy. But those hours are flexible and can be worked around my fitness schedule. I've also signed up for yoga and I intend on running 1-2 times a week in addition to the 4 days a week of Crossfit.

My next post will be my goals. This post is about the no excuses attitude I'm taking on this summer. I've jump started this all with a 10 day herbal cleanse of which I am on day 3. So far so good. I feel good! I feel confident I can whip my body back into premarital shape. More on all this later.