Years recap thus far...

So after starting this blog late last year, I actually thought that I would do a much, much better job at keeping up with it. The past year since then though has pretty much been a whirlwind. After my move to Massachusetts, I quickly got settled in and found myself really enjoying the change of pace. After losing my gramps in February though, I really had to keep my focus on the positive things in life and realize that he was in a better place, as to not get discouraged and depressed. Getting in the gym each and everyday and pounding out my workouts, really helped me to do just that too. Then came March, and that meant the start of dieting since my original intention was to compete at Jr. Nationals in June. Well after not progressing at all like I should have (I was stalled out for a few weeks on end, although I was still giving 100% effort to both my weight workouts and cardio) I became pretty sick for a good week or two. It was then that I decided the prep needed to come to a stop, I needed to worry about my health and feeling better as opposed to any show, since there would always be more shows. So after kicking the sickness, taking a couple weeks off dieting (still eating clean just at a maintenance) upping my calories and taking time off from the gym until I was back to 100% I was ready to go at it again. Needless to say, after a few weeks I was again hitting a plateau. Which brought me to a crossroads again, meaning I could either make some drastic changes in order to drop weight quick (surely NOT the healthiest option) and do the show I had in mind, or pick a different show and go from there. Well obviously I again knew the answer, and that was to stay healthy and if I had to diet longer then so be it. Surprisingly after making my decision, and changing up a few things, I am again back to making some nice progress. During all of this time, I have really tried to even decide if wanting to do a show was in my goals for the year or not. I mean its not like I've gotta stand on a stage somewhere just to see how much progress I have made in the past year, seeing as how all that can be shown in pictures and measurements too. Besides that, I have several other goals in mind such as doing another sprint distance triathlon, or possibly a half marathon relay with a good friend of mine. All of that being said, I am gonna be better at keeping up with this blog and trying to keep things interesting... so besides the diet and training stuff, the daily stuff that life throws my way, I will also be sure to include several HEALTHY recipes, as I cook each and everyday and find it to be a very enjoyable hobby. I love being able to come up with new ideas, or just altering some of my families beloved recipes out of Grandma's cookbooks, so you can be looking for several of those along the way too! Thanks for following along.