Thankful and Fitness-Related Ramblings

Still no unemployment compensation in sight, so I've been helping a friend out with his landscaping business to earn a little cash. To be honest, what I'm earning wouldn't impact the UC at all, as it is below the weekly limit, but it is a HUGE help, and gives me a great feeling of accomplishment. It also makes me happy to know that I am contributing to the family income...not just happy, actually; ecstatic, humbled, and exhausted all at the same time. Big work with big rewards.

I have to find a way to figure out how to thank these guys for giving me the job...hmmmm.

In the meantime, I've become really focused on my fitness. Contrary to what I expected, I have MORE energy now that I've started the manual labor thing. I hit the gym every morning, and keep meticulous track of my calories and macronutrients. I feel like I'm in the greasest shape of my life. My weight dips and spikes wildly day to day somewhere between 167 and 173 for some reason, but I just average them and say I'm 170. My workout happens shortly after breakfast, and includes a quick warmup, a "complex" or "giant set" of 4 bodyweight exercises, 4 heavy sets of an olympic-type lift, and then a more traditional weight lifting workout, alternating between "push" movements and "pull" movements from workout to workout. I do this 3 days per week, and run 10 minute miles for increasing distances (I'm at 2.5 mi now) 2 days per week.

I'm eating around 2000 calories per day, and, even though there was an initial drop in weight, I seem to have leveled of around the 170 mark. The vast majority of my calories come from Yougurt, eggs, seafood, fruit, nuts, and veggies. I have a sweet tooth, so I slip a "fun sized" Twix or Peanut M&M pack in there sometimes. I also have a serious ice cream problem, so I have little snack sized containers or Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches. I also drink a little, but that's a story from a different time.

The attention I pay to my diet has reignited the joy of cooking within me. I am trying different cooking methods, and trying to use fresh herbs (grown in my garden) and a variety of healthy and fresh ingredients.

The4th of July and my birthday (5th) will be a bit of a challenge to the diet, but I'm up for it.