Time To Kick It Up A Notch

With the slew of doctor's visits over the past few months, I started to fall into a rut and the thought, "When these issues are resolved, I'll feel better and move forward with certain goals," ran through my mind.  That's not a healthy mindset because let's face it, life happens and there will never be a perfect time.  So, no more pity party!

Coach Jim recently had me increase the draw weight on my bow to 35# so that I'll be able to hit 70m which is the farthest distance in some of the tourneys.  Boy o boy, pulling 35# ain't no joke!  I was averaging 90 arrows on shooting days at 31# and now I've been slowly working my way up from 30 arrows, 42, and most recently 55 arrows.  It was just 8 months ago I started archery with a 15# bow.

Yesterday, Lizzie and I spent the day at the range sighting in our bows for the various tourney distances.  It was a beautiful day topped with a young deer (a bit older than a fawn) running in front of us as we walked toward a target to get our arrows.

Over the past month, the three of us (Jeremy, Lizzie and I) have been eating really clean: lean meats, fresh fruits/veggies, dairy and gluten free, with a sweet treat every now and then.  We all feel great and I'm happy to say that the spinach and bananas are now getting eaten before they rot.  Can't tell you how much $ we've wasted in the past with not eating fresh food fast enough.

We recently found the old Body of Work video from the late 90's where Jeremy and I got seriously inspired to live healthy.  It was in 1999 that Jeremy shed over 70 pounds of fat and I released 45 pounds too.  Notice I didn't say "lost fat"?  We didn't lose it because we aren't looking for it.  :)

Here are some of Jeremy's before/after pix:

Halfway through 3 month sprint, Sept 1999.  After: Nov 1999.




Before: Aug 1999.  After: July 2000.  12 month sprint.

 

12 month sprint, July 2000.

Before: 1998.

 

Before: late 2000.

Before: late 2000.

Halfway thru 3 month sprint, early 2001.

After: spring 2001.

After: spring 2001.

After: 2003.

After watching the vid, I looked up Lynn Lingenfelter, one of the champions who was a big inspiration to both of us.  I learned that he is suffering from a brain virus since the filming of Body of Work.  Despite Lynn's challenges, his faith is strong in God and he still inspires me.  Through Lynn, I learned about his strength coach, Darin Steen. 

Darin is a natural body builder who has the same philosophy as we do; how to BE healthy from the inside out.  After talking with Jeremy about my desire to incorporate more exercises into my routine and need to build strength for archery, I decided to reach out to Darin.  We had a great chat where he interviewed me and I interviewed him about my goals and physical limitations.  Having a coach to train me safely is #1 priority.  We both agree there is a good connection and I'll start training with Darin soon.

Here is my starting point for 2013 training:

Before: Aug 2013.

Before: Aug 2013.

Before: Aug 2013.

Before: Aug 2013.

The time has come to kick my training and nutrition up a notch and train like an athlete!