Final Post - In Love

First off, let me apologize for taking so long to get this final post pulled together. Let's just say that the Holidays are a most challenging time for finishing a hard-core project such as KFB. No excuses, though. I chose it; I must follow through.

I am in love with my body. I love the way it looks now. I love the way it feels as I move through space. I love the way my body burns through Thanksgiving and Christmas meals. I love the way my body bounces back from a knock-down, drag-out flu. I love how it plies and pirouettes and jump kicks and puffs candles out (once in awhile). I love how my body is nowhere near its peak and everyday of practice brings triumphant accomplishments and frustrating challenges. I love it, totally and completely. Thank you to the creators of PCP and KFB for bringing me to a wonderful, fresh understanding of my physicality.

Now, let's break it down to some specifics, starting with the benchmarks. Jump Height. Honestly, my jump height didn't improve all that much. Maybe I added an extra half inch? Not much more. After all the floor jumps, pistol squats and creeps during PCP, I already had some killer leg muscles. Perhaps I should add some extra leg exercises to my workouts once in awhile and see if it carries me higher. Ball punches went from 26 to 72. I'd say that's some improvement. Morning forward bend from touching toes to touching the floor, hands not flat on the floor but halfway flat. Nice. My flexibility makes me happy, and it can only get better.

Pictures. This montage is a post-PCP picture on the left and a post-KFB picture on the right. I apologize for not brushing my hair for the KFB pic but really are you interested in my hair?

The differences are subtle. Legs are bigger. Some of that may be high calorie holiday dishes, hard to say really. The biggest difference is in my core, especially my external obliques. Those babies are impressive.

The strength packed into that core blows my mind. No, I cannot do 10 full kung fu sit-ups in a row (toes touching bar) but I can do 2 with my toes ALMOST touching the bar. That is a far cry from barely pulling them to a 90 degree angle in my first attempt at a kung fu sit-up. I can now do 4-5 pull-ups in a row, up from the 1-2 that I could do when I finished PCP. Jumping rope. I'm a pro. Criss-crosses, I got 'em, multiples in a row. Double jumps are easy. Jumping on one foot, doing the Rocky, give me a jumprope trick, I'll make it happen.

So, those are the stats. Now for my feelings. Actually, I want to do some comparison with PCP. My experience of each program was completely different. KFB was a fairly solitary journey for me, whereas PCP was a group adventure. I chose not to share my KFB blog with the Facebook world or even with many of my friends. Also, the support was just not as enthusiastic or as constant as during PCP. I know this has a lot to do with timing, with group dynamics, etc. but I wonder if KFB is just bound to be more isolating. Because of this, I almost think that PCP should be a prerequisite to KFB. I'm not sure that I would've been as successful without my first COMPLETE stamp.

I was less disciplined with my diet on KFB. I wasn't super lenient, but I was more forgiving of special occasions. Coming off of PCP, I knew the diet. I was prepared. I didn't think twice about my veggies for breakfast or refraining from salt. No sugar in my coffee. No problem. No desserts in the house. Done. Limited cheese. Fine. No fried foods. Easy enough. And, most importantly, lots of lean meats, fresh veggies and fruits. These things were easy because I already had my system from PCP in place. I didn't need to think twice. So, whereas I think PCP turned my world upside-down, I think KFB was the one stabilizing factor in a life that's gone hectic, topsy-turvy in the last couple of months. The times they are a-changin', but I'm still jumping rope and meditating everyday. I need some constants in the face of a completely blank slate future.

I adored the KFB workouts. I still adore them. I've done two maintenance workouts and plan on trying to intersperse some workouts from the PCP maintenance plan. Mostly for a little diversity and to target some other muscles. I'll continue to work with ballet and plan on focusing more intensely on yoga while in Africa. I'll have enough time to do 2 workouts a day if I so desire. Cardio/strength in the morning. Stretching/flexibility work in the evening. It'll be awesome!

So, with that, let me just say thank you to my team for having my back. No matter how far along you made it in the journey or how challenging it was to stick with KFB, I know you all grew from this experience as much as me. Also, thanks to those who followed my blog, the commenters and the lurkers. And, of course, thanks to Patrick. I won't prolong the thank you, because I think you know how much I appreciate you. At this point, I consider you a long lost friend who's finally reentered my circle. Here's a gift for you. The metro-Atlanta area covered in Christmas snow.

This White Christmas was a gift from the Universe, a reminder of why life is so precious. The snow started to fall only 5 minutes into my 4-mile Christmas day run. At the end of my run, I was rewarded with a solitary moment at the edge of a magical field, a place that fills my childhood memories. I stood quiet, listening carefully as each gentle snowflake embraced the dry, brittle leaves leftover from Autumn's massacre. Life is truly breath-taking.

So, I've been waiting for this moment since I started KFB. Without further ado,

And, I will kick your ass in my zebra skivvies!