About Me

My vitals:
  • For the past 11 years, I've been married to the oft-mentioned M, who posts food porn on a daily basis over at Nom Nom Paleo. Together, we have two small boys, Lil-O and Big-O. My wife and kids are three of my favorite people on the planet, which is a good thing, because I'm stuck with 'em.
  • I have a desk job and a long commute. I stand in my office all day long ('cause sitting will kill you), doing a job I sincerely love. It is more awesome than you could possibly imagine. (Really: I love what I do. And believe it or not, I spend most of my waking hours trying to get even better at it.)
  • My Meyers-Briggs personality type: ENFP. My Enneagram personality type: 3.
  • Just about all of my blogging takes place after the kids go to bed, and before I pass out. So if the stuff I write makes no sense, it's probably 'cause I'm half-asleep. And if you see something on this blog that's offensive, poorly-written or just plain stupid, I'm sorry. I do a ton of editing and proofreading in my day job, but this blog is typically written on-the-fly and off-the-cuff.
    • I'm not a big guy (5'7", 135lbs), but my overall health is good, and I'm pretty satisfied with my body composition. So while I'm obviously fixated on health, longevity and fitness, I'm not doing any of this to lose weight or bodyfat, or to address a particular health concern. If you're looking for a weight-loss or fat-loss blog, this isn't it.
    • I love CrossFit -- it's a head-over-heels kind of thing. Since discovering it in 2010, my passion for it has continued to grow, and I'm on a mission now to spread the good word. My coach tells me I've become a CrossFit evangelist, and I can't disagree. 
    • When I turned 30 a bunch of years ago, I thought I was decrepit. I'm now much closer to 40 than 30, but I'm feeling younger, stronger and more energetic than I did ten years ago. I attribute this to CrossFit and Paleo nutrition.
    • go off the rails on rare occasions, but most of the time, I eat clean, lift heavy, and sleep like the dead. Why, you ask? A desire to be the best version of me I can be. (Secondarily, I'm also motivated by a house blend of vanity, fear of mortality, and lack of other meaningful hobbies.)
      • I'm a regular member of the 5 a.m. class at CrossFit Palo Alto. Why exercise before the crack of dawn? Because I enjoy hanging out with my fellow early-morning nutjobs. Also: I have a lot of other stuff I need to do during the day -- like work. And eat. And hang out with my family and friends. Priorities, people.
      • I started this blog in the fall of 2009 to keep my sorry/lazy/fat ass accountable to my health goals. At the time, I was starting P90X (you know -- the home workout DVD system hawked on late night infomercials), and at the time, my posts focused on my daily workouts. Since then, I've also started posting any health-related crap that strikes my fancy. (Including videos like these and these.)
      • I'm a P90X "grad" (hooray for me). I've also done Insanity (along with a bunch of other stuff). But I'm not a BeachBody coach, and I have zero interest in ever becoming one. (MLM programs skeev me out.)
      • And no, I see no reason to go back to P90X. (Though I'm still a fascinated observer -- from a distance.) It was a great gateway drug to fitness, and if it weren't for P90X, I don't think I would have ever found my way to CrossFit or Paleo nutrition. But I also appreciate the stuff I learned in high school without ever wanting to go back.
      • You can email me by clicking here, but unless you're contacting me to reveal a deep, dark secret, please just post a comment on the blog. I welcome your feedback... unless it's dumb, in which case you should keep your thoughts to yourself. (Or do what I did: Start a blog in your spare time and fill it with useless content and inane commentary of your very own.)
      Cheers!