Week 25 - OOOOOOH! I Can Taste the Half-way Mark!

The Numbers (as of 5/24):

		Pushups	Crunches	Kata	Sparring	Journey (Swim)	Journey (Bike)	Journey (Run)	Kindness	Journal	Video
Annual Totals:		23,550	23,550	479	219	0	539	513	487	23	0
						1,052
Annual Targets:		50000	50000	1000	1000	2400			1000	52	12
Percent of Annual Targets Complete		47.10%	47.10%	47.90%	21.90%	43.82%			48.70%	44.23%	0.00%

Do you see? Do you see how close some of those numbers are to saying 50%!?!?!? Oooooh, I'm so excited to see some 50%s! And on that note, I'm feeling good about my physical numbers. I do, however, realize (and sometimes panic) the need to get my butt in gear on the videos. 

And just to show you guys where I am with the other requirements/goals (books to read, 1/2 marathon time, etc.):

Other Requirements/Goals
Empathy Training			Blind		Mute		Wheelchair			Complete:
Read 6 books			X - 7 Habits	X - BABOK	X - A Call to Action					Complete:
Seek out a Master			In contact with Marilyn Fierro							Complete:
1 Personal Goal			Rancho Cordova Challenge - 1/2 Iron Distance (70.3) - Oct 5th							Complete:
Memorize the Black Belt Pledge										Complete:
1 Community Service Project										Complete:
Conquer 3 Personal Fears			Riding		Scuba			?		Complete:
1/2 Marathon in < 1:46:00										Complete:

So, three books down and feeling good about that. 7 Habits of Highly Effective People was good. One that I need to keep rereading :) The BABOK was about as painfully boring as it gets. But... t's basically a manual about how to perform business analysis so I wasn't expecting a thrill from that. A Call to Action was recommended by Sensei Callos and it's a keeper. Some of the statistics in there made my head hurt regarding inequality among genders and the religiously motivated acceptance of that inequality.


I am in contact with Kyoshi Fierro, who, by the way, just got promoted to 9th dan! I need to send her an email and get this rolling. I have a couple of community service project ideas that are progressing. Haven't attacked those fears yet. No, I'm not stalling... :) My 1/2 marathon is down to a 1:52:12 so still some work to do there but feeling good about my running.

The Training:

Well, I'm still here, I'm still in this thing, I'm still training: dojo time, bike time, run time, Tabata workouts at lunch time, etc. Notice I didn't say swim time? I know! I know! But I am signed up at the gym, that's a good step, right?

I think I ate more responsibly this week. Went to the farmer's market yesterday so I have a great stash of fresh fruit to get me thru this week. Yum!

The Challenges:

Say it with me... We all know it... "Time management!" So, I've decided to pretend that there are 25 hours in the day. And I'm just gonna see how that works. Also, I have managed to convince some friends that going for a nice evening run is synonymous with "hanging out." It's just a very kinetic version of it. So I'm able to get some social time in and some mileage at the same time. Phew. Hopefully they'll stick it out with me. :)


Levels:
Injury: Finger... it won't heal, it refuses
Number of bruises: 3
Motivation: Climbing steadily
Next Event:  June 2nd - Oyama Tournament, June 28th - Zooma Napa Valley 1/2 Marathon

Determination:

Week 24 - There's No Such Thing as "I Don't Have Time"

The Numbers (as of 5/17):

		Pushups	Crunches	Kata	Sparring	Journey (Swim)	Journey (Bike)	Journey (Run)	Kindness	Journal	Video
Annual Totals:		22,650	22,650	458	203	0	517	487	467	21	0
						1,004
Annual Targets:		50000	50000	1000	1000	2400			1000	52	12
Percent of Annual Targets Complete		45.30%	45.30%	45.80%	20.30%	41.82%			46.70%	40.38%	0.00%

WOOOOOO! My mileage requirement has been met! I broke through the 1000 mile mark and it feels good. That's one requirement I can check off. Now I just have 1400 to go in order to reach my goal mileage :) Other than that there's not much to say. The numbers are consistent and I'm happy with that. 

The Training:

The physical aspects of training are feeling good. I'm enjoying the Tabata workouts even though they will be causing my mileage to drop a bit for a couple more weeks. They are worthy workouts,  I work out a lot and a 20 minute Tabata circuit leaves me aching. Highly recommend a dose of Tabata for anyone who wants some But... there's more to training than the physical aspects.

This morning I read the Ultimate Black Belt Test (UBBT) blog entry of a friend of mine from the Alabama trip, Paul Castagno (you can read it here). His blog reminded me that there are some other aspects of the training to write about. For example, healthy eating. That's a part of my training that could use a bit of work. I mean, I won't give up chocolate, and in general I'm a healthy eater, but there is room for improvement. I get my 5 fruits a day and eat loads of veggies. But... I could clean my eating up a bit. Less frozen veggies, more fresh ones; less frozen meals for lunch at work; more home-cooked stuff (which also means I'll be eating more burnt food, haha); and less iced tea more water... Those are good things to focus on for the time being. Thanks, Paul, for the reminder.

The Challenges:

Remain the same. Time management isn't necessarily getting easier, but I squeezed in a couple hours of welding in on Saturday and it does make me feel better. So, although it sounds ridiculous when I tell myself I'll make time for my hobbies every week, I'm going to say it anyway :) What I absolutely won't say, is that "I don't have time" for something. I feel like that's a self-fulfilling prophecy, so I won't say it. I will find a balance somehow. Rest, workout, train, play and breathe. 

Another challenge that I haven't talked about much is the meditation. My brain doesn't do "radio silent" very well. The two things that keep my mind in a quiet place are running and kata. Sitting and trying to still my mind is NOT easy. I am, however, getting more comfortable sitting in seiza for longer periods. Not long ones, mind you, but longer than 5 months ago :)

Levels:
Injury: Finger
Number of bruises: 4
Motivation: Getting back up there where I want it
Next Event:  June 2nd - Oyama Tournament, June 28th - Zooma Napa Valley 1/2 Marathon

Determination:

Week 23 - Sourcing Determination

The Numbers (as of 05/10):

		Pushups	Crunches	Kata	Sparring	Journey (Swim)	Journey (Bike)	Journey (Run)	Kindness	Journal	Video
Annual Totals:		21,600	21,600	435	191	0	483	472	446	21	0
						955
Annual Targets:		50000	50000	1000	1000	2400			1000	52	12
Percent of Annual Targets Complete		43.20%	43.20%	43.50%	19.10%	39.80%			44.60%	40.38%	0.00%

No real change. The numbers are as they should be except for sparring counts but I will work on that. I'm excited that I'll hit the mileage requirement this month. Then I'm breaking into my goal for the extra 1400 miles. That feels like progress. Love that the percentages are nearing 50%. I'm really looking forward to that half way mark.

The Training:

I feel like it's going well, but I pendulum back and forth between feeling like I'm just doing too much to feeling like I need to step it up. It's kind of driving me crazy. I think it's caused by the diversity of things I'm training for. Running and cycling keep me in good cardio condition. But martial arts isn't the same as going for a nice, long run. It's like going for a long run that's comprised of sprints (eew), fatigue squats (ugh), getting kicked in the head or punched in the guts (ouch) and wall kicks (feel the burn). So basically, I get excited when my running improves, then frustrated when I'm winded after a few minutes of sparring. I have no doubt that my conditioning helps, I just wish they could overlap more. So, for the next few weeks leading to the Oyama tournament, I will replace a couple of my lunch runs/rides with a tabata workout.

And some other stuff that's going on:
Got some video footage and need to get to work on that.
Working on the community service project.
Gathering info for my write-up on Kyoshi Fierro.

The Challenges:

The time management challenge isn't going away. I might get better at it, but it's not going away. So, there's that. And that goes hand in hand with balance. Not just balancing rest with workouts. But, also ensuring that I make time for the fun stuff. People talk about work/life balance all the time. This is similar, I call it Black Belt Test/Welding-Building-House-Cleaning-Sleeping balance. I'll work on a more efficient acronym. 

Levels:
Soreness: Not too bad
Injury: Finger
Number of bruises: 5
Motivation: Still climbing (and still arguing with the desire to nap)
Next Event:  June 2nd - Oyama Tournament, June 28th - Zooma Napa Valley 1/2 Marathon

Determination:
Shifting from motivation to determination this week. When I was just starting this process, there was a mixture of feedback. Some people just nodded and said "go get it." Some people wondered if was even realistic and what the point of it was. Sometimes it helps me to think there are people who might doubt that I can do this, or that it can even be done, that it's just not realistic. The stubborn in me comes out roaring and I stand up a bit straighter.