Principles

It's Sunday. A good day for reflection. A good time to think deep. But not too deep, cause there's football on TV.

Have you ever had to compromise your principles, for a good reason? Should we be prepared to do so, in case the need arises?

Many folks think of principles along religious/moral lines - and those are important. But I think we use principles anywhere there's a consequence we want to avoid.

We learn to protect ourselves from ourselves starting at an early age. Growing up, our lack of understanding can get us into real trouble, so we're told, "don't talk to strangers," or "eat all your vegetables," or "stay away from the power lines." What? That was just me? Oh...

As we mature, so many things aren't so clear-cut. We've gotta decide on our own where to draw the line, and - to make matters worse - sometimes that line moves depending on the situation. We can start talking to a few strangers. We can avoid some vegetables. We can occasionally play near the power lines. As we become accustomed to certain situations, we can use moderation, rather than principle, as our guide.

So, let's say I'm invited to your house for dinner, and unbeknownst to me, you just happen to be a breaditarian. You only eat junk, plain and simple. Stuff that I'm clearly trying to avoid on my diet. So you serve up a menu worthy of a booth at the Texas State Fair: cheese fries, hushpuppies, and deep-fried butter.

Now, if I'm sticking to principle and not eating any of this stuff, then A) I'm depriving myself of calories that I need to continue burning fat (I haven't eaten anything since noon and I won't be leaving your house until 10 p.m.), B) I may be doing a disrespectful thing by coming into your home and refusing your hospitality, and C) Those cheese fries do look pretty good, and I might just build them up in my mind to something greater than they actually are, if I keep them entirely off-limits.

But with moderation as my rule of thumb, I already know what a sensible portion size is, because I've faced this challenge before and I can get only the calories I need for maintaining metabolism. I can pretty well figure out when enough is enough (the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility says I wouldn't have really enjoyed eating much more, anyway).

Now, for another example of sacrificing principles in favor of moderation. Let's say you started a fitness blog. In this blog you vowed brashly, "There will be nothing professional at all about this weight loss plan." Just for argument's sake, let's say a week later, your friend, who's got some professional experience on his resume as a personal trainer, invites you over to work out with him, and is very helpful and encouraging, in addition to providing additional accountability toward meeting your goals.

So you have to ask yourself - is it really worth it to throw away this huge advantage, simply to hold onto a sense of prideful independence and avoid having to rewrite your blog's ill-advised mission statement? I'll give you a hint - the answer is no.

All that to say this: I got my butt kicked this morning. In fact, that workout was so wonderfully painful, I can only make up new words to describe it... Destructionary. Revolutionative. Brutalicious. Murderiffic. The kind of workout that makes you glad you didn't waste time eating breakfast, because you probably would have lost it.

I don't know if this guy has a personal website (He does have a name - I'm just withholding it to protect the innocent), but I'm reserving a space to link to that website, should he decide to start it. Good times were had by all. I won't bore you with excruciating detail about the exercise science involved. I'll just sum it all up in my own words below.

WORKOUT SUNDAY 10/10/10

Equipment: Kettle Bell, Sneakers, Muscles

Intensity (1 to 7): 6

Length: Just under 30 minutes total (15 mins & 45 secs, followed by 5 min rest, then another 14 mins)

Description: Basically a circuit (completed twice & timed) consisting of: snatching a 25-pound kettle bell from the ground (set of 15); squatting with no additional weight (set of 25); bear crawling about 30 feet; 10 push-ups; 15 sit-ups; 15 leg raises; & about a quarter-mile jog uphill and back down (using the term "jog" about as liberally as possible).

SUNDAY DIET LOG:

9:30 a.m. homemade breakfast burrito containing 1 egg, 1.5 slice bacon, 1/4 cup cheese, 1/2 cup hash browns, 1 oz green chile sauce with pork, 1 medium tortilla, estimated 500 cals

1:30 p.m. large salad containing 4 cups green salad mix, small handful croutons, 1 egg-boiled/sliced, 1/4 tomato, 1/6 cucumber, 1 tablespoon bacon bits, 1.5 tablespoon honey bacon & french salad dressing, estimated 300 cals

5:30 p.m. 3 oz. piece of hamburger steak, 2 KFC grilled chicken thighs, 1/4 cup green beans, 1/4 cup ramen noodle salad, 1 deviled egg (half-egg), at church picnic, estimated 650 cals

Total: 1450 cals