Reader Mail 9

Mistress Krista,

Thanks for the site. I came upon it when looking for inspiration as a small, stumpy female grappler, and boy, oh boy, inspiration did I find! I have been involved in 2-3 sports my whole life, but still 30-40lbs (!!!) overweight.

Why? Oh, I dunno. Maybe the feeling of deserving my chicken tenders and french fries after a hard run, or the giant bowl of pasta the night before. Or maybe it’s the emotional connection to food after a bad breakup my senior year of college. Or maybe the fact that I was repeatedly told to starve myself and run 15 miles a day if I wanted to feel thin — never mind those weights. Just move along.

So, Krista, thanks to you, I’m telling all of those douches to fuck off — by getting super fit a la your advice, and squatting myself into emotional independence. Oh, also, I started about a month ago, and have lost 4 lbs. But that’s not the best part — I’ve doubled the amount of weight I can squat, and I’ve had some major breakthroughs in jiu jitsu. Plus, I have enough energy left over to take up another sport.

Circus acrobatics, here I come!

As my arms, back and core become stronger, I’m now adding to my circus arts repertoire: flying trapeze. Now I can work on my muscles from 30ft in the air! It sounds terrifying because it is terrifying.

All the best,

Michelle

P.S. I’ve attached a picture of my first launch – notice the terrified grimace on my blurry (moving!) face. I’ll send more impressive ones in the future – like videos of my first knee-hang and backflip off the bar.

michelle first trapeze swing omg

Dear Krista,

I’m on my way to NYC Black Box where Allison Bojarski will train me for a day. Allison is kind enough to regularly link to my blog from her site, and suggested I get in touch with you. Allison thought you may like to know there’s another writer out here who’s as into lifting as I am (fairly obsessed, to be truthful).

This Friday marks one year from my first workout — it was at Derby City CrossFit with coach Ben Carter (who now trains me in a garage).

Long story short: I went from a completely out-of-shape desk-bound food writer to having competed in the USAPL Raw Nationals last month and breaking the APA squat record for 105s in June with a 180 squat.

Your blog mentions liking before and after pictures – here’s a fairly dramatic one.

dana - oneyear

I’ve also written some pieces on heavy lifting for women over the past year — one for blisstree (“I Heart Powerlifting“), one coming out in Experience Life magazine next spring, and a couple locally.

As part of my planned celebration of my “birthday” this weekend, I thought it would be fabulous if you were to mention me/link to me as you see fit. My training blog is It’s Always Going to Be Heavy.

Thanks for reading this missive, and for all the help you’ve been to me over the past year. There are woefully few great writers in fitness, fewer still women and lifters so I’m glad I found you early on.

Best,

Dana

Dear Krista,

I just wanted to shoot you a message to tell you how very greatful I am for all of your wonderful insight into nutrition and fitness. I’m a dude. I’m also a professional recording artist and music instructor. I’ve been active most of my life and always concerned with fitness and wellness. My approach to teaching has always been holistic and I have always encouraged my students to be active and eat healthy. However, I feel like many motivated folks out there I was misled by well-meaning and misguided fitness “gurus” over the years.

Your book “Fuck Calories” has been a great inspiration to me, and one of the most important resources on my quest to living a more balanced and joyful life. I try to share this book with all the people that I know who are struggling to find balance and get in shape because it addresses so many fundamental misunderstandings about food and how to consume it.

I never really realized or understood the significance of eating slowly and how the WAY that we eat is such an important factor. Anyway, I went from 190 to 165 and quite a bit leaner, gaining strength and energy along the way. And I feel I owe so much of my success to the information that I got in your book.

I also want to let you know that I was the type of person who used to scarf down small meals every couple of hours, 5 times per day because I was told it would speed up my metabolism and help me get “ripped”. It’s funny because getting “ripped” isn’t even a priority for me anymore. I just want to be healthy, balanced and full of energy, but in the process of pursuing this goal I have gotten leaner than I’ve been since I was a teenager. And now I’ve gotten back into cooking delicious feasts for me and my friends and family.

I think your message is very powerful for the male audience as well, especially with all the “six pack” obsessed fitness “experts” out there who are marketing their programs to insecure, desperate men. Just look at all the supplement companies and the way they market their products. It’s brutal. I just want you to know that I’m really grateful for the work that you are doing.

I posted links to your book on my website which you can check out here: www.izaacmusic.wordpress.com. Also, feel free to post the pictures that I’ve attached. The first one (left) is me at Mardi Gras 2010 at 190 lbs, and the second one (right) is me in Miami several months after I read your book this past year at 163 lbs.

Don’t forget about the boys!! Men have a lot of the same concerns as women. They deal with the same anxiety, trauma, insecurity, and confusion that women do. We may be quicker to grunt and moan in the weight room than women are, but we are just as mis-informed as women when it comes to training and nutrition.

Here’s to a fit life!

Sincerely,
Izaac
www.izaacmusic.wordpress.com