Binge Fitnessing
Over the past two years I have been on this endless search of balance. I am constantly trying to find the perfect balance between life, training, work, and somehow excelling at all of them. This past weekend I pulled the equivalent of three all night fitness basement parties. Over three days and eight workouts I went from completely healthy to sleep deprived, hyper-stressed, over trained, and found my general mood to be less than friendly. My adrenals were completely shot and the fourth cup of coffee I drank on Sunday left me just as tired and rundown as when I woke up.
Every once in a while, The Fitness Chick (my fiancé Ashton) and I, get all dolled up and hit the town for a big date night. We will usually pick some nice restaurant we have never been to and turn the romance game up to about a level 7.4. We sit down, check out the menu, and then I start to get all fratty and check out the cocktail menu. This is sign number one you are starting to get old when you look at the cocktail menu. In college I was all Natty Light, throughout the 20’s it was Bud Light, and now my classy self tries to make sense of whatever the hell the bartender is trying to sell me by putting organic cucumbers in gin. It is a scary world out there. Around the time dinner shows up, I look over at The Fitness Chick and utter something along the lines of, “Yo, this drink is either super strong or I am really pathetic.” It never fails.
In college, and most of my 20’s I thought I needed a six pack before I was ready to do anything on a Friday or Saturday night. I cannot begin to tell you how many times I looked over at Bryan and said, “Yeah, I’m cool, I have only had four beers.” Yes, my tolerance was a little higher and I practiced drinking more frequently, but alcohol still affects you the same no matter what. Now when I throw on the drinking shoes and try to get super awesome, it lays me out for two days, my sleep sucks, and I am completely drained. I do not actually think it is an age thing. I think what has changed is my awareness to how my body feels. I can’t just push through because now I know that hangover is really your body pumping the breaks and screaming, “Too much.”
When I was deep in the fitness competition scene, all I ever wanted to do was train. I would train two to three times a day. I believed I was above the side effects, adrenal fatigue, poor sleep, endless mental stress, and constant soreness. I cannot tell you the number of times I would look at Bryan and say, “I’m cool. I have only trained twice today.” The truth is that I believed myself. I never realized how much of a debt I had put my body in by training, running a business, stressing the daily results, and terrible sleep.
Over the past two years I have been on this endless search of balance. I am constantly trying to find the perfect balance between life, training, work, and somehow excelling at all of them. This past weekend I pulled the equivalent of three all night fitness basement parties. Over three days and eight workouts I went from completely healthy to sleep deprived, hyper-stressed, over trained, and found my general mood to be less than friendly. My adrenals were completely shot and the fourth cup of coffee I drank on Sunday left me just as tired and rundown as when I woke up.
Even with the beating my body took, I revel in being able to hang out with all the new kids that show up and play this sport. At this stage of my fitness game, being able to compete at a high level is something I am very humbled by. I love the perspective I can take into competition. Unlike four years ago, competition does not define me. The ability to compete and maintain some longevity in a sport I love, however, is really important. I think it is important to take a step back and say, “Today, it matters.” Every year, and sometimes monthly, I reassess this idea of fitness in my head. Currently, I need some down time to get healthy and sleep better. But, the CrossFit Open is seven weeks away and this weekend I found out I can still play this game. Are fitness competitions healthy? Absolutely not. But, part of seeking balance is finding out what is too much, what is just right, and when you need to push more. Pub crawl or fitness competition, sometimes it is important just to find out if you can still play the game.
