Gastric Bypass - ONE WEEK Countdown

One Week. One week away. Hi guys, I'm back for a bit. Sorry, I know it's been awhile but lotta stuff has been going on. Here goes

Since January of 2019, I've been pursuing the option of Gastric Bypass Surgery to continue to get me towards my ultimate goal. After having lost 140 pounds without the use of surgical weight loss, I reached a plateau. I saw an endocrinologist, was monitored and followed by a dietician and endocrinologist for 6 months. I met with a psychiatrist to determine if there was a psychiatric reason for why I had plateaued. I attended workshops and seminars and after 7 months, I was approved by insurance to go forth with weight loss surgery.

Mind you, I understand gastric bypass is a TOOL for weight loss; however, a very effective. I did over 6 years lose 140 pounds and am proud of the work I did on my own, but now I need to put my health at the forefront and move forward with the next step in this journey.

ONE WEEK FROM TODAY on August 30th at 5:30am, I will be reporting to have Gastric Bypass surgery. The recovery is insane. I will have to take 6 weeks off work to recover, during which 2-3 weeks will be me on a liquid diet, followed by 2-3 weeks of a pureed food diet and a week or two of soft foot consistency. I will be in the hospital from August 30th for 2 nights before I'm released back home.

To aide in my recovery and avoid any FOMO and desire to return to working out too soon, I will be suspending my Facebook and Instagram through the month of September to focus on my recovery. During that time I'll be posting a weekly blog on here to document my journey with the surgery.

I'm not at all looking at this surgery as a quick weight loss fix. Weight loss surgery is a TOOL in the weight loss arsenal. It is the most effective tool and it is not something I go into without 100% focus on success. Stay tuned to what's next for me.

Yoga Teacher Training has been pushed back to the end of January at Mosaic Yoga. After which I'll obtain my Group Fitness Training Certification. My first race back after surgery will be the Lululemon San Diego 10k in Mid November, followed by Rock n Roll Las Vegas 5k AND Half Marathon the following week. I'm going into this with a focus on my health, my recovery and ultimately a vision for my goals.

Yoga Teacher Training Update - New Studio & Dates

Second First Steps

My intention during today's practice at Mosaic Yoga: was just that, Second First Steps. Embrace the newness that comes with taking that first step no matter if it's your first, second or third "first step".
Recently, the studio I was to begin Teacher Training at sold and as a result the new dates didn't align with my schedule. After soul searching & sadness, I realized the blessing that came from being gifted the time to continue my practice while recovering fully from surgery so I can go into Yoga Teacher Training 100% ready to excel and be the forever student and the teacher I hope to be.

I visited a few studios & today, I took my second first step. In February, I will be one with & connected with my new body & begin my Yoga Teacher Training at Mosaic Yoga. All the funds raised from my Crowd Funding Campaign will be transferred directly over to the new studio & I was able to qualify for a Scholarship for the difference.

Sometimes in life we get that first step, that first chance, but more often times we get several second first steps. Learn to love the second first steps, because its between those first steps and second first steps, you grow and truly learn what you're ready to take on.

Come February, I will be beginning Yoga Teacher Training at Mosaic Yoga & am beyond excited for this second first step in my life.

Joalby - Future Yoga Teacher

What have I been up to? Where have I been? What's really going on? Well here's the thing... After completing my Ultra Marathon, I took two months off from running and shifted my attention to relearning what it means to have FUN with fitness.
I had a chance to lead and program workouts for my DownTown Fridays Stair Group as well as my gym, Movement Warehouse. And I shifted heavily over towards my intention for the new year - the reason for all the changes at the start of the year.

YOGA TEACHER TRAINING

In 2013, I set out on a journey to change my life. I walked away from music & began personal training & running. In the years leading up from then to now, I was able to drop approximately 140 pounds. I gained this new sense of empowerment & appreciation for what my body is capable of. Since then I have ran numerous half marathons & ran races in 12 states in the USA, 2 states in Australia, Vancouver & Italy.
In 2018, I challenged myself to complete an Ultra Marathon. I completed my first Ultra Marathon in January of 2019 with my purpose set on showcasing to others that in fitness there is no ideal body type. Whether in running, weight training or Yoga, there is no ideal body.

During my training, my running coach, Lauren Padula, implemented Yoga into my training & it taught me that there is still so much more that my body is capable of. My goal with Teacher Training is to continue my mission of showing people who are hesitant to take that first step that there is no better time to start, there is no Yoga body, there are only bodies who practice.

My end result would be to find a way to incorporate my Yoga Teacher Certification into teaching classes that would put people at ease seeing someone who has experienced the journey they are currently on, incorporating modern music in varied styles to take the pressure off that people might feel entering into the traditional yogi setting. I want my classes to encourage and motivate people of all shapes & sizes to pursue the practice more deeply, with music ranging from country to classical to jazz to rock en español.

I have currently raised $700 of the $2,000 necessary for my Yoga Teacher Training. I will have another $300 paid towards my training in the coming week. This leaves a difference of a little over $900 to raise before the end of June in order to lock in my Early Bird Pricing.

Please consider donating to my GoFundMe at bit.ly/JoalbyYoga to help me get to my goal. If you feel inclined, you may also share this to anyone who may feel inclined to help.

Much love to you all. I'm excited to share the journey towards Yoga Teacher Training with you all. My Teacher Training is scheduled from September to November of this year through Mission Beach Yoga.

Love to you all,
Joalby

MY GO FUND ME PAGE 

I'm An UltraRunner - What's Next? ... I'm glad you asked

Three weeks into the new year. I've neglected this blog as I settled into the new year & the changes to my fitness goals. That said, I've finally had time to sit with it & get over the fact that it finally happened.
On Saturday, January 12th, I completed my first Ultra Marathon. And I did it in a very different way than I set out to do so back when I first went out to achieve this in October 2018. I didn't blog about it this time, I didn't invite people to go and support & cheer me on. I continued to train using the final few weeks of the training program I had completed with Lauren Padula, but I didn't track my long runs or any of my runs for that matter. I didn't wear my FitBit as I didn't want any of my runs tracked. I didn't want anyone to know what I was doing this time.

Now before you say, it seems selfish after I started out so transparent in doing this, let me explain the why. After I DNFd at Lake Hodges 50k, I fell into a depression. I knew that with the exception of a few people, if anyone knew I was jumping right back into training I'd have to deal with everyone's opinions on why I should rest and give it some time. I wasn't willing to rest. I wasn't ready to give it time. And I wasn't open to anyone else opinions at the time. It struck me that I had let my mind be influenced by  everyone else's energy who were in what appeared to me as a caravan of Ultra Marathon Hopefuls at the time. I became too tied up in what was outside of myself that while it didn't affect my race or my pace, it affected my readiness to deal with the possibility of not finishing.

I had gotten so far disconnected from how I was preparing myself. I didn't think that EVERY long run, EVERY training run, EVERY challenging moment of my training I had done on my own. I had the support of my friends, but ultimately I was out there running, hurting and crying on my own. I went out there on January 12th with the only people I know out there being the Elevation Culture team, who were the reason I had even chosen to go after this goal.
I signed up for the SD50 Trail Ultra Marathon, knowing that my intentions were to run the race and circle back and add some distance to it to qualify as an Ultra Marathon. And amidst rain, holding on to fences to avoid mud, sliding in mud puddles, running across rivers and up mountains in the rain - amidst that all I finished after 8hours and 40minutes.
I AM AN ULTRA MARATHONER! I AM WEATHERPROOF! I DID IT!

The most important lesson I learned during this process is that I have it in me. When people told me I don't look like a runner, when people told me I don't have a runners body, when a doctor told me this couldn't possibly be healthy for someone my size - I continued & I proved I had it in me. I might not have what people see as the ideal runners body, but on January 12th, 2019, I achieved something most runners never have.

To further my message that in fitness there are no ideal bodies, I will again be challenging myself & challenging others perceptions of fitness bodies. In Summer of 2019, I will be participating AND COMPLETING my Yoga Teacher 200Hr Training in San Diego. I'm still toying with how I'm going to find the $2,550 price tag. But I have started a Go Fund Me to help with at least some of the cost. You can hear more of my story & donate or share the story with others at the link below:
gofundme.com/joalby039s-yoga-teacher-training
To support or learn more about my journey towards Yoga Teacher Training, please visit Help Fund Joalby's Yoga Teacher Training

SD50 Trail Ultra Marathon - January 12th, 2019

Crossing the Finish Line - Photo by Eric Chrisman of Elevation Culture

Set Your 2019 - Challenge What The Future Holds

Every year, I start off with a song that I hope will influence my next year. In 2018 it was "Please Don't Stop The Music" by Rihanna & Charo. In 2017, "Starboy" by The Wknd. In 2016, "Are We Out Of The Woods Yet" by Taylor Swift. This year I threw it back with an older song with an amazing message, that for nearly 25 years always comes back into my life when I need it. My song for 2018 is "You Gotta Be" by Des'ree. So let me enter into 2018 solving puzzles in my own sweet time & challenging what the future holds.

2019 is here & I was influenced by the intentional planning for 2019 that my friends Sheri Matthews Kimmel & Lauren Padula did to do my own intention and goal setting. Here goes nothing AND more importantly here goes EVERYTHING.


WHAT AM I PROUD OF IN 2018?
I am proud of opening up about my journey & beginning to blog. I am proud of having committed myself to a focused training regimen under Lauren Padula. I am proud of having run my first FULL MARATHON (no glitz, no glamour, no medal, no closed course, no finish line, no cheer station) all as part of my training & all on my own - proving that I have it in me.

WHAT AM I LEAVING BEHIND IN 2018?
The constant pursuit of a PR. The feeling that I always have to increase the weight load and get more reps in. I still might have it in the back of my head but it will not be a driving force in my fitness journey going forward. This past year I've seen that in constantly chasing something worthy of being celebrated, it was keeping me from fully enjoying the moment & being present in the process.

WHAT ARE MY INTENTIONS / PRIORITIES / AREAS OF FOCUS SET TO DRIVE MY 2019?

1. Fun In Fitness
By no longer chasing a PR or Praise for what I'm doing, it will allow me to go back to finding fun in the act of doing.

2. Transformation
With continuing to lose weight after my chest surgery earlier this year, my Doctors in the USA and in Mexico agreed that the best bet right now would be to maximize the weight loss prior to any abdominal surgery. What this means is Summer of 2019, I will be having a Gastric Bypass surgery instead of excess skin removal. Doing so will help maximize the weight loss by helping me to lose another 70+ pounds, after which in 2020, I'll go in for the full excess skin removal.
This is something I had a very difficult time accepting, as for 5 years I was able to pride myself in losing approximately 140lbs WITHOUT any surgical help or gastric surgery. In working with my doctors and discussing this, I realize the WHY and that in the long run it would be the best option. I'm not going to lie to you and say I'm not scared. Not for the possible complications. I'm more scared of how this will affect my running. With my stomach being reduced by so much, I'm afraid that any hopes for longer distance running will come to a halt due to my inability to fuel up or hydrate enough to sustain myself on those runs. But more on that in a separate email.

3. Body
I have quit my membership to my gym Performance360 & will be transitioning over to The Movement Warehouse to switch up how I train. My new process will focus more on movement, mobility and body mechanics. I want to go back to HIIT training and body weight work to help prepare me for my recovery post surgery. I want to have a clear and better understanding of what my body is capable of. The body is an incredible thing, capable of so much. It's my goal to see just what new ways I can challenge myself this way in the coming year. Whether that be dropping in to dance classes, changing my training & ultimately post surgery and recovery with improved mobility looking more into Animal Flow - possibly attending a seminar.

4. Follow Through
I need to stop making excuses and finish this EP and release it already. After having been raped, I began to write songs as a release. I have three in various stages of completion, but the idea of releasing a product has been terrifying almost as much as the actual act. I'm not sure I'm ready to face it head on in front of people. I don't know if I'll be able to sing the songs. I'm not sure what effect going back to that moment in this way will have on me emotionally... That being said, I know the importance of using my voice and speaking my truth & I wouldn't forgive myself if I didn't finish this project and release these songs in hopes that someone else could connect and learn and grow from them.


WHAT'S MISSING IN 2019 INTENTION SETTING, THAT HAS LONG BEEN PRESENT IN PREVIOUS YEARS?

The constant want & search for a relationship. Now before you say I can have it all, let me stop you. I know I can. I've had relationships before the assault & I've attempted to have some kind of semblance of relationships after the assault.
There is nothing wrong with wanting to be in a relationship, but when the constant search for something outside of yourself takes you away from being able to live in harmony with the only one who really matters - YOU - then it's time to reexamine. I know 100% I'm still broken & triggered & affected by what happened to me. I know that intimacy terrifies me now. I know that I shut down and begin shaking & want to cry when any sort of intimacy is approached. I acknowledge that I'm not ready for a relationship in a conventional way & I'm ok with that. I also acknowledge that I am more important right now than my desire to be in a relationship & I'm ok with that too. Sometimes things happen to us in life that we don't deserve & that we can't erase, but I have to believe that it's for a reason & that something good HAS to come out of this.

Jan 1, 2019 - I get to call this home

Heading Into 2019 - The Pivot Is Strong With This One

With the new year just around the corner, there are so many changes on the horizon. This past year, I was lucky enough to step into so many new roles I would have never thought I could land in. As a musician, I always tend to become a different version of myself on stage, as it helps to counter my social anxiety and feelings of inadequacies and doubts as to whether my story is worth listening to. Having been on a fitness journey for a little over 5 years, I wanted to motivate others and create workouts but had been beaten down by my thoughts as to whether I align with the image of what a leader looks like. I know I'm not your ideal body type for that & I'm not upset when people wrote me
off. They are led by what society has taught them to expect. It's nothing personal.

Over the last few months, I've been trusted with programming and leading workouts for our Friday Stairs Workout Group. Programming the workout is one thing, but being trusted by my peers & people I look up to is ever so much more important to me. It reaffirms that I am capable of doing something that society and self have so often told me I'm not good enough to do.

In the last week of 2018, I also was able to work out at the Navy SEAL Training Center in San Diego, through my friend Tim, who was able to get me into the AO2 (SEAL) Marc A Lee Training Center. Awesome experience, complete with a hyperbaric chamber which is used for High Altitude Simulation Training.

About those changes I alluded to, I have shifted some of my Fitness Goals for the 2019 year, which means changes to how I approach training & more specifically WHERE I train. I have decided to quit my membership at Performance360 after 21 months, effective January 18th at the end of my current cycle. The programming is great. The coaches are amazing; however, the programming doesn't align with or let me grow in ways that I'm looking to grow in 2019. A shift in where I'm heading towards sometimes means stepping back from what you're currently doing and doing something different. This is the first of several changes 2019 is bringing with it.

In the words of my friend, Quitting Evangelist, Dr Lynn Marie Morski, "Quitting is actually what the business world calls, 'Pivoting.'" ... In 2019, you're going to see more Pivoting from me - FOR ME.

First things first, kicking off 2019 with a Road Trip to Sacramento with two of my best friends Tim &
Jessica, which will include dropping in to Anywhere Fit & running with 9Run6 (formerly November Project Sacramento)

Leading DownTown Fridays on Nov 30th

Leading DownTown Fridays on Dec 21st

Road to 50k - Give Me My Ultra Title

Road to 50k BACK ON!!!

So as many of you may know, on October 27th I went out to complete my first 50k at Lake Hodges 50k. Due to some issues with the calculations of the cutoff station, I ended up being cut at 30k. At the finish line, as I was discussing giving it another go in a year or so, my friend Eric of Elevation Culture said something which shifted me towards a forward trajectory. He said "Why wait another year? You're already trained and ready. Get out there now and try it again."

I mentioned that I would signup for the San Diego 50 Trail Marathon, put on my the same organizers, Off Road Pursuits. The race is on January 12th. My goal would be to finish the Full Marathon, run through the finish and then head off to do another few miles getting me to my 50k. The medal doesn't have to say 50k, so long as the Strava does.

The benefits of this race are:
No hard cutoff for the Marathon, so long as you finish before the 50 Milers. Also, it's approximately an 11 to 12hr time limit and it's mostly on the same course (in reverse) as the Lake Hodges 50k, meaning I am already familiar with the course and terrain.

So here we go again - Road to 50k. Except with only 5 weeks to the race, this is really more of a sprint to 50k than a long road. This is more me refusing to wallow in the defeat of a DNF. Failure is only failure if you accept a hard stop & in the story of my life, NO STOPS ARE HARD STOPS.

All it takes is one to call yourself an UltraRunner, right?

San Diego 50 Trail Marathon - January 12th, 2019