I'm not done

Life is not all sunshine and rainbows. I have been dealing with Bicep Tendinitis which struck on Oct 30th. 59 days. 8 and a half weeks, but who's counting....... It sucks. I have NEVER had a real injury before. In all my years of sports I have had some pulled muscles, shin splints - but nothing that has ever had me out. Well, now I am. I am being patient. I am listening to my husband and coach. Did I mention it sucks? I had to pull out of my first individual competition. Boo.

I have shed a few tears, but I really am trying to stay positive and keep working on what I love. Lifting heavy shit, hanging with friends, laughing, and relaxing. Another thing that is helping is social media. How? Glad you asked. Thanks to Facebook, Google, and Instagram I can stalk and keep up with all my #wcw's and what they are up to. Often they talk about PRs, but they are open about their struggles and injuries too.

Tendinitis suffer: Kristin Pope, all around bad ass

Annie: 2x Games champ sidelined with a herniated disk in her back

Hip flexer injury took Camille L-B out of gymnastics. She won the Games this year

Miranda broke her neck in a car accident - she went to The Games on Team Nor-Cal this year

Molly broke her ankle at Regionals this year. Oh, and she besties with Miranda

My point? Obviously this injury will send me to Regionals or The Games (hahahahahhaha). Injuries happen. There are worse injuries out there than what I'm dealing with, I will recover and be just fine. What doesn't kill you......right?

One great part of social media, combined with my amazing ability to stalk, is that most of these athletes blog about their injuries, the recovery, and what they learned from it. Molly wrote about hers here. Miranda wrote about her injury here. Annie talks about hers here. 

I am running. I am lifting. I am doing TONS of mobility and stretching. I am being patient. Why? Because I'm not done. I love this shit. I am getting ready for Cold War in January (team event) and it's going to be awesome.

I did discover some fun things I can do pain free. I can do strict pull ups. The top one is my first EVER strict pull up. The bottom is my first since taking many many weeks off. I can also snatch (hehehehe) without pain. Yipee!!!!!

Keep moving. Keep inspiring. Keep kicking ass!

NYC: Afrobrutality and Master Chef Junior

This weekend was a blast. We spent it in the car (boo) and in New York City. It took us a forever to get into the city - Friday afternoon traffic was sllllloooooooow. We hit the city around 7:30 and had dinner in Harlem with Syn of Afrobrutality.

Syn of Afrobrutality with Skully the Pit

We ate at Spaha Soul - Syn shut that joint down for our family to eat with him and a few friends. It was great. I had buttermilk fried chicken, collards, and mac n cheese. So yummy! Next time I get the spicy yams.....they looked delish.

Spaha Soul in Harlem - YUM

This dude can cook - Super nice

Who forgets to snap a pic? Me. I suck.......next time we take pics!

Meeting up with Syn was awesome - but the main event of our NYC trip was so Sammy could audition for Master Chef Junior. He finished his cooking and interview on cloud 9. He cooked an egg, chopped some veggies, and measured water.  He did this all on his own - Sam sat with the other moms (hahahahaha)while Sammy did his thing. I don't care what happens now - he left feeling awesome about himself and had a huge smile all day! If he makes the cut we should hear this week. Fingers crossed!

Sammy went in feeling the love and support from friends, family, and school. His whole class made bracelets and wore them on Friday to support him (tear) - what a great community he has! Thanks guys!

Getting ready

Sam kept me in the loop as we hiked NYC

So beautiful

NYC at Christmas is amazing. So many lights. So many trees. So many people! Where do they all come from? Whew. Busy for sure! We walked a ton, saw lots of sights - including Santacon

So many Santas

Drunk at 9am

We gotta get back up to NYC soon - Syn mentioned an amazing pizza place that we NEED to go to. Girl's gotta eat.

In the mean time, it's cold outside. Get yourself a brutality sweatshirt for all your training and chillin needs.  Maybe "The People's Athlete" will have a shirt........stay tuned :)

I want the green one

Everyone loves a hoodie

I QUIT!

Dramatic? You bet. Did I really quit? Nope. That's exactly how it felt though......ugh. I don't like change. I don't like not doing something I said I would. I just want to follow the plan. Sometimes, things interrupt that plan.

Like injuries.

Saturday I was signed up to compete in my FIRST individual competition. Superfit Rubicon. It was going to be magical. My pull-ups were looking good (stringing 12 together!). My lifts were improving in technique and weight. I wanted it. I was happy. I was determined. I was going to prove how hard I've been working. TO THE WORLD (or anyone awake at 7am in Mclean).

Cue the shoulder. Doc says it's bicep tendinitis. So I've been doing rehab. Nothing over head. Nothing that hurts. Which all hurts my soul.....

Injuries. Not impressed.

Enter the Superfit workouts. I was glued to my computer Thursday. Waiting. Maybe magic will happen and the workouts will only be double unders, box jumps, deadlifts.....no shoulder needed. No such luck. Each one did play to my strength. I loved them all. This was going to be uh-mazing.........Oh - but my shoulder still hurts. Talked with my husband and Coach Bijan - both said "Nope". Not worth becoming seriously injured. Not worth throwing The Open. Not worth surgery. No sir. 

I just want to lift!!!!!!

Emotional. Yep. Just a bit. I slowly let my support crew know I was not going to be competing. It was hard, but it helped hear their supporting words. My partner in crime, Holly P,  sent me this gem:

#truth

My people. My support. Love them

I tried to stay away from #superfitrubicon, but I couldn't. I watched the videos. I scrolled through the pics. I didn't cry. I didn't throw anything (can't. Hurt my shoulder. duh). I put my big girl panties on and did squats, lunges, hollow rocks......stuff I CAN do. That's where my focus needs to be. What CAN I do? Turns out, a lot. So for the near future all my programming will be focused on everything that is not my shoulder. It sucks. It's frustrating. I will come back stronger, tougher, smarter. Believe that.

Believe it

I tend to be dramatic (remember when I quit?..Up top).......this is a time to put things in perspective. My husband helps me do that. My coach helps me do that. My goals are the same, my approach will change. I am on the same journey - just a few more turns. 

That time Miranda broke her neck....

and then

Regionals 2014...then went on to the games!

Instead of competing this weekend I played with my kids (add in 1 cousin), made a gingerbread house, and got our Christmas Tree. 

cousins

so much fun!

Tree Time!

My journey is still happening. Life is good. Next weekend is NYC and Afrobrutality. Hell Yeah! The reason for my visit? That is a different post all together :)

sneaky sneaky

Whenever I need a good laugh, a smile, anything to make me feel better I just look at Dawson and Kim. My favorite ugly criers. Your. Welcome.

 

The People's Athlete. You can.

I love sports. I really really love them. I don't like every sport - sorry baseball - but I am very competitive so watching a game is right up my alley. My mom enjoys sports a lot. My dad once brought a book and his lap top to a game - he's more of a chess guy.

I played field hockey and lacrosse in high-school. I did a brief stint on the indoor track circuit. Did.Not.Go.Well. Turns out I didn't like to just run.

Never. Ever. 

I went to college on a lacrosse scholarship. I was constantly surrounded by people that were competitive on another level. I loved it. I miss it almost daily. Crossfit has replaced some of that feeling for me. I'm surrounded by a group of people that are competitive - yes, there are people that just want to sweat, just want a good workout, etc. You can find me chatting with any one of them. I love em all!

Next week is my 2 year Crossfit Anniversary. In that time I have competed in Superfit DC twice, Superfit Delaware, Cold War 3, and the Capital Throwdown. Coming up I have Superfit Rubicon (my first individual) and Cold War 4. I love to compete. The adrenaline and excitement sends me to the bathroom about a million times - but I love it. 

Delaware was so fun!

Team America sitting in 3rd after workout #1

All this makes me an athlete. True. I Googled it:

Athlete: a person who is trained in or good at sports, games, or exercises that require physical skill and strength

Synonyms: competitor, jock, player, challenger, contender

See? That's me. I love being an athlete. I identify with that right after Mom and Wife. I live for the feeling I get when I workout, when I PR, when I win, when I just show up, when I inspire others, when I get to cheer on my friends.........it's all awesome. 

A Google image search for Athlete

What they have in common is heart and desire - and that black outfit

My stats: Snatch: 105#, Deadlift 285#, Back Squat 245#

I am an athlete because I love it, not because I lift the most or run the fastest. It makes me happy. I show up day after day to get better and to cheer on my fellow athletes. 

The People's Athlete. That's me. I'm here to cheer for you. I'm here to show you it can be done. You can make the time. You can be strong. You can be fast. You can be bad ass. We cannot all be these chicks:

wow

Inspiring? Yes. Awesome to watch? Yes. Absolutely. Will this be you? Probably not. Their full time job is working out. Most of them have some pretty legit athletic backgrounds (think division 1 gymnasts). That's ok. We need the pro's to inspire us.

That's where I step in. I am here to show you that the average woman can be an athlete. You can. Whether it's for the first time in your life or you are getting back into it. You can.  

Yep. Pull ups at 34 years old

I kinda gave myself the title. It's ok. People do that.

You know who loves The People's Athlete? Afrobrutality. Syn rocks. I wrote him my goal is to inspire the average athlete. Show them it can be done. It's not too late. You don't have to spend 9 hours a day in the gym to make progress and be bad ass. Obviously he loved it.

My favorite brutality tank

Always feel bad ass in this tank

Check out Afrobrutality. They have cool shit, great coffee, and are located in New York. What more do you want?

Go out there and be bad ass!

• star