Day 1: Choosing to Love Myself and Own My Life
Day 20. Saturday, December 26th.
Christmas came and went, Michael’s latest visit is in the books, and Mira is off the next four days. It’s time to start working towards normalizing things and getting back into a solid routine. I started the day off with a 15-minute Headspace meditation, which I hadn’t done in almost a week. I also did some Qigong and a few shoulder exercises/stretches. My shoulder pain has been creeping back as I’ve been slacking on my exercises, haven’t had any treatments, and missed my supplements a few times. (Proteolytic enzymes and turmeric complex for inflammation/pain, as well as CBD-infused Ghee from Jambo Superfoods)
I took Marley for a nice 20+ minute walk and got some sunlight on my face. From there, I jumped right into work for the day, which mainly consisted of getting caught up on emails/messages. For lunch, we had the pork cutlets and apples/onions that I’d cooked a couple days ago, with an Asian sweet potato (the best potato on Earth, sooo good). I don’t know who first paired apple with pork, but I’d like to shake their hand!
[caption id="attachment_4589" align="alignleft" width="300"] Pork + Apples = Win[/caption]
After lunch, a little more work/emails – and then I did my first real workout in a long time. Kettlebell swings, 30 minutes, with bouts on the rebounder in between sets. I used a 24kg kettlebell, which is approximately 53lbs. We’re going to be getting some kettlebell videos up on the website soon, as I’ve mentioned they’re a favorite training tool. I could definitely notice that I hadn’t serious swung a bell in a long time – and my grip strength was the weakest link. I completed 270 swings in 30 minutes, with a first set of 50, and then subsequent sets of 30, with rebounding in between sets. I’m really hoping that making my first blood donation and lowering my iron will give me a boost in the training endurance department. I’ve heard that from many people who have been through the hemochromatosis situation I find myself in. (elevated ferritin/storage iron) Hopefully I can get in sometime next week to do that.
After the workout, I had a Pure Paleo Protein shake (Designs for Health – Beef Protein) and a can of organic pumpkin. This is my favorite post workout fuel. Partially because it’s a good quick replenish, but also because I love canned pumpkin. Call me a weirdo if you want, but I think it’s delicious!
Now it was time for Mira and I to venture back to the theater (I practically live there at this point) to catch Star Wars on the IMAX! I was part of the “Star Wars generation”, and have seen each of the original three movies hundreds of times in my life. Nothing compared to Star Wars as a kid, it was by far my favorite show, movies, toys, etc… and played a big part in my early life. We got stuck in mall traffic (who knew so many people went to the mall the day after Christmas?), so we only got there about 15 minutes before showtime. This earned a spot right in the front row at the IMAX. (definitely not where you want to be)
As a snack during the movie, I had some raw walnuts, raw Brazil nuts, and a Nick’s Sticks. (We ordered 100 of those a couple months ago – great to have around!)
Without giving away any spoilers or anything, I’ll just say that I was quite underwhelmed by the movie. It wasn’t bad, but wasn’t great either. Definitely better than the three terrible movies that came out 10 or so years ago, but not nearly as good as the original trilogy. I’m actually pretty surprised by the number of friends I have who said it was “amazing”, “awesome”, etc… as I really don’t feel the same way.
After my eyes, ears, and nervous system recovered a bit from the onslaught, we had some dinner. The last of the leftover jambalaya, with some plantains, mandarin orange, and kiwi!
Mira and I rounded out the night with a couple mindless, but funny, episodes of Bob’s Burgers. It should be noted that we don’t have a TV. We watch anything on my 23″ computer monitor, which has the f.lux software installed. Throws off the color after sunset, but isn’t quite as harsh on the eyes. I highly recommend getting it installed on your computer!
Got to bed early, probably by 9:30, and all in all a relatively productive, healthy, and fun day!]]>