But I get that, blogging is more about expressing my ideas and thoughts and not my day-to-day activities.
Moving to Austin, has though been a life changing experience. It's given me the independence I needed so desperately to become the person I know I can be. I know I can push myself further, physically and mentally if I'm doing it on my own. If I fail, I fail and I can pick myself up, wipe off and learn from my mistakes.
I'm sure some of you hate it, and that's fine, but CrossFit has certainly helped teach me this. I'm not going to go on a tangent about how you should try it. It's not for everybody. It's for strong minded people who enjoy fitness. It's cultish and I like that. It's also provided me with friends that I otherwise wouldn't have made and an idea of fitness that I hadn't been accustomed to. It can be for anybody, but its not for everybody, and thats what makes it unique.
At 29 years old, I feel better and stronger, mentally and physically than I ever have, and that includes playing sports in high school and at George Mason. CrossFit has also given me a much better relationship with my girlfriend. Which was the original idea for this post.
Mel and I have only been together 15 months, which in real world time is nothing, not even a year and a half and I love her, I legitimately do or I certainly would not have moved out to Austin with her, packing up my life to live with someone that I kind of sort of like. We have our differences, but that makes us real people not robots. She is the missing piece in my life that has finally made me the person I want to be. I like to think I do the same for her. Though she will never admit it :-P We push each others buttons but I can honestly say there is no one better for me.
She told me once, joking, that girlfriends will mold their boyfriends into the what they want them to be. We joked that "Oh no honey, I'm not changing you, I just want you to be the best version of yourself... that I want" I can't say she's molded me. If you knew me before and after I'm still the same person, I think. But I am much,much happier. I can promise you that.
We have shown each other our passions and interjected them into our lives. She is passionate about working out. I need someone to make me more passionate about working out, as I found myself, being very complacent with my own body, gaining excess weight that I didn't need and certainly felt it. When running a mile was a challenge I knew something was wrong.
So after 10 months of her telling me, CrossFit wasn't what I thought it was, and persuading me that I would love it. I did it. I'm not as hooked as her, and I'm fine with that. It gives me what I need physically and more importantly it gives me time with her in a unique way.
My dad told me, and before that, I think she told me via a story that couples that stay together are the ones who are into the same things, that its important for each person to at least try to be into the activities your partner enjoys, whether they be poker, or book reading, or working out.
Sometimes when you least expect it, you might find something you like as well. Or you won't. I wouldn't suggest faking it, to make the other person happy. That's just as detrimental, it will harbor a sense of resentment, the old "I'm only doing this because you're making me" will one day cause a major fight.
As I talked to my dad about this, he made it clear that it if she liked it and I liked it that it would only strengthen our relationship, and CrossFit certainly has.
Last night, we worked out at almost 11pm with our friend Kayla at Crossfit Westlake, for a grueling hour or so. I can say without question that most of you see no fun in working out at 11pm, especially not doing deadlifts, kettlebell swings and pull ups. But we had a blast, we were getting tired prior to going to the gym, and got a second wind that lasted until almost 3 in the morning. After working out, we went out to a bar in downtown Austin, which for our first time drinking downtown, I will sadly admit, was in sweaty workout clothes, but its in Austin, people are in Austin are weird, no one even took a second glance.
It was sort of unconventional, but so are we.
It's what makes us, us.
In April on 2010, if you would have asked me if I would have moved to 2000 miles away with a girl I would have probably said yes under the right circumstances but deep down, I would have wanted to say no, probably not.
Ask me the same question, 15 months later and the answer, obviously, will be different. But the circumstances were right, for both of us. The commitment towards one another to take this leap of faith into a different state/time zone and part of the country has shown me how much I love my girlfriend. I know when we first started talking about it, some of you ( our friends) said we were crazy, a lot of you, pushed it off as something that wasn't going to happen. Another crazy idea, that will fizzle out in a few months once reality sets in.
this was one of the best things i've read in forever. you are clearly made for each other!
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