Wrote this today and thought it might fit in this category

I was asked, why I started, where do I see myself in a year and what my plan was. All great questions. In order to fully understand all the answers to these questions a bit of information about me will be required. So bear with me and here goes.

I have always been in so so shape. Early 20s to late 20s I was big, lean, and built. A wonderful ife happened, (18yo son, 12yo daughter) and my needs were no longer number one. From late 20s to late 30s (which is now) I have maintained I'd say about 50% of my former glory lol. Until about 3 months ago.

In my career it is EXTREMELY competitive. Probably the most competitive profession in civilized nations all the way from getting hired to promoting within the ranks. This year I decided that over the next 10 years I was going to up my game. I realized that I could not go to my grave with regrets of not having done enough in my life. See I'm not a guy who plays for participation ribbons. I play to win, period. It is just a matter of me making the decision and what obstacles are in my way that I need to take out. Some people may disagree with that type of attitude. I know I have certainly ran into many people that say "all you can do is your best". I disagree. I will do my best. If I fail, I will find out what is required, make my best better and do it 1000 times until I get where I need to go. Back to 3 months ago.

The promotional exams were announced by the department and there was one position available. I decided this year was time for me to advance my career. 31 people tested for 1 position. #1 was the only spot and failure was not an option. If I didn't promote, this exam wouldn't come back around for another 2-3 years. Being stuck in a lower rank that long can be devastating to your career path and even more so to your retirement. So for 3 months I dedicated my life to the promotional exam, all while building a home, moving, and studying. It was a complete onslaught of *kitten* everyday. I had no idea building a home, and financing after the new regulations was going to be such a pain. The last time I bought a home it was already built and 9 years ago. To shorten it up, I scored #1 and reached my goal. I also had an unintended consequence. I gained 15ish lbs lost a lot of strength, and felt in the dumps health wise from spending 12-16 hours a day 5 out of 7 days a week studying. I would do push ups and stuff but none of it was enough. I watched what I ate but still eventually sedentary lifestyle just over runs you. That is "why" I am doing it. It's time. It's my next accomplishment ahead of me, set by myself.

Where do I see myself in a year? So much goes into that. Seems simple enough but to me, everything is interconnected. For the purpose of here I will keep it to physical goals.

Goal 1 - 1/6/16

Weigh 170 lbs by losing the weight I have gained. This will be some muscle but mainly dead fat weight.
The date is the day I fly out for my brothers' (1 of 3 and the youngest) wedding. I'm not in it. It's small. It's just a date that is significant to me and I have found that having significant dates that matter for some reason or another seems to me more effective then "3 months" or something to that effect.

Goal 2 - 3/17/16 Saint Patrick's Day

Muscle up. This is a compound exercise that is a pull up continuing up over the bar and doing an arm extension to the point where your waist is at the pull up bar.

As I have grown older and wiser I have come to value compound exercise. I can do more work in less time and be productive doing more important stuff (school work for my degree, spending time raising my kids) for the rest of the day. It will become my new baseline. I will have roughly 10 weeks to build up strength and technique. Dead weight will be off so most of my body weight at that point will be functional making my goal easier to obtain. Once I do one, I will always be able to do them and when I get close to not being able to (everything in life is cyclical to a point) then I will realize I need to focus more on my physical ability.

Goal 3 - (date undetermined)

Prepare for a marathon that qualifies me for the Boston Marathon. I have ran a 1/2 marathon. I want to run a full marathon with some intent. My family is from Boston. Too early to determine exactly when the date is because qualifying for 2017 starts in 2016. Just a matter of which one I am going to choose based on when I will be ready.

That's where I see myself in a year. A guy who does mainly calisthenics, stretching, and cardio with an athletic ability that keeps me happy, healthy through my remaining years, be able to accomplish my goals and ambitions. I'm pretty sure that was a run on sentence

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