This weekend, my wife and I attended the Texas Renaissance Festival, as is our tradition every year since we met. This was our 14th visit to the festival together, and also as is our tradition, we did it in costume. Last year, we went in Scottish garb; I wore the Marine Corps tartan kilt with accouterments while Sherry made her dress from a pattern of a traditional Scottish dress. Needless to say, we’ve both lost a lot of weight since last year, so we both needed to make adjustments.
For me, I had to buy a new shirt (down from XL to M) and a new kilt (down from 44 to 32). Fortunately, the belts were adjustable and everything else fit properly, if not better (like the socks which were not stretched over my over-sized calves). Sherry had to do more work, as her dress was handmade. She expertly took in the shirt and the dress and they both looked amazing on her!
We had a great time with our good friends Kenny and Elaine. We even had some cider and ate some of the fair food which consisted of sausage, red cabbage, and sweet potato tots. We even split an order of potato pancakes which were delicious! With all the walking we did, we both did great on the scale the next morning; she lost a pound while I stayed exactly the same weight as I was on Friday.
Eating Paleo at a festival like this is pretty easy as a lot of the foods are pretty basic. Sure, there are burgers, hot dogs, quesadillas, etc that are definitely not Paleo, but there were more Paleo-friendly foods than not, which was a nice change.
It’s okay to go out and have fun on Paleo, or even on your Whole30. Just be smart and make good decisions. Neither Sherry nor I felt like we couldn’t enjoy the festival in any way. As a matter of fact, it’s one of the more Paleo-friendly venues to visit. We highly recommend it (and stay for the fireworks show, but get a seat early).
Most importantly, there’s my partner, my best friend, and my wife, Sherry. Without her, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Without her, I would have failed a long time ago. She’s a big part of the reason I stuck with it. There are times I had to lean on her, and other times I needed to be strong for both of us while she leaned on me. Together, we’ve made it this far, and I’m excited for what the future holds in terms of our health and fitness. We’ve been able to undertake many new adventures together as fit people; things we couldn’t have ever done before. It’s like we are living in new bodies now!
She’s my amazing cousin, and were it not for her, I likely wouldn’t have learned about Whole30 or Paleo. It was at her suggestion and urging that I looked into them and finally undertook this journey that has led me to where I am today. She’s been a total inspiration, and early on, a source of motivation and support. I am forever grateful for her help.
He’s a good friend who has been telling me about the evils of sugar for a long time. It finally clicked when I read about Whole30 and Paleo, and now I’m 100% on board. He is super-fit and is very health conscious. I hope to be able to do some of the more physical activities he takes part in soon.
My sister is the picture of motivation, dedication, and hard work. She’s always been amazing, but when it comes to fitness, she’s a super hero. I used to think that it was impossible for me to get fit. While I may never match her intensity or her results, I look to her as a motivator and as inspiration for working hard and never giving up.
She’s an old friend who has been working at improving her health for a long time. She has been relentless and tireless in her efforts, and even in the face of adversity, just keeps on going. Her tenacity and perseverance are inspiring, and whenever I feel like I might not run because I’m too tired, I think of her and pull myself out of bed and just go.
She’s a friend from High School that overcame some significant health battles and came out on top. She’s been running and engaging in fitness activities for five years now, and has an indomitable spirit. She’s like Hanna: don’t let anything get in her way. She’s the other half of my getting going in the mornings when the going is tough.
We’ve only met once, but we’re related in a round-about way. She’s relentless when it comes to her workouts, and pushes herself to the limits. She’s far more intense than I could ever be, but her enthusiasm for working out is inspiring and motivating.
I say dedication and motivation are important in a successful journey to lose weight, but this morning, I realized that there’s another ingredient that I have employed and ignored. It’s because it’s something I use for every goal I have, whether it’s to buy a new gadget or acquire a new skill. It’s perseverance.
I just looked it up in my Fitbit app: I began running on September 10th; that’s seven weeks ago. I’m astounded by the progress I’ve made in that short time. I have been purposefully taking it slowly and trying hard to not overdo it. In the past, my efforts in getting back into running were always derailed by my over-enthusiasm and injuring myself by doing too much too soon. Not this time.
This past Saturday, my wife and I took a day trip to her alma mater, Texas A&M University. It was a beautiful day, and I was finally able to walk the grounds and listen to Sherry tell me the history of the school, the campus, and individual buildings there. She also interjected interesting tidbits from her time there and told me how she loved being there until she got a taste of being an “Adult” and then all she wanted was to leave and start her life.
Paleo Marine 