Checking In Again
A life update after four months without writing
Hey folks -
I haven’t been writing much this year - this is actually the first piece I’ve published since New Year’s Day. Hope everyone’s been well and the year has been running smoothly.
On my end: I took a break from a few activities at the start of 2024. Captive to the stress-laden pull of workplace gravity, I found myself in a dead sprint to start the year, quickly burning out from the pace and the intensity. When there’s work to be done, pre-IPO, cash-burning startups require every hour, blink, and pulse you can muster. Such was the case at the time.
So in January, chained to my desk job without a blink or a breath to spare, I stopped writing for a while. I also stopped training Jiu-Jitsu. I chose to spend any extra time I had with my girlfriend, or working on my strength and conditioning side project. Writing and fighting are two of my favorite things and I’ve struggled a bit without them, but I think it was a good decision to back off of both for a while.
An Update on Building
CSCS Exam
Back in March, I sat for the CSCS (Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist) exam. I’d been studying for about seven months, and the NSCA’s latest statistics show 37% of first-time test takers passed both sections in 2023.
Stoked to announce I’m in the lucky one-third who’ve passed.
Here’s what this means:
If I wanted to work in Strength and Conditioning full-time, this certification would be a requirement. From what I’ve been told, college and professional programs won’t hire strength coaches without them.
For building a revenue stream in personal training and S&C work, I didn’t need this certification. I could cut to 4% body fat and market the hell out of myself on Instagram and achieve the same (better?) results. But a CSCS certification lends credibility in the industry, and the knowledge required to pass the exam is extremely helpful when writing training plans and guiding athletes.
I did a hard thing and I’m really proud of it.
Starting a Company
Last week, I filed an LLC with the state of California, and I’m about halfway done building a website that I hope to launch over the next few weeks. I’m going to have a handful of product offerings available right away, which I’ll detail when the site goes live.
An Update on Training
After spending all of 2023 working with a bodybuilding coach, I’m about 12 pounds heavier than I was a year ago, most of which is lean muscle mass. I spent the first three months of the year in a strength training block, where I put up the following (meh) numbers:
Bench pressed 245x3 (up from 225x3)
Squatted 315x3 (up from an embarrassingly low 285x3)
Deadlifted 435x3 (up from a less embarrassing 415x3)
I’m spending the next three months training for the San Francisco Half Marathon, while lifting 2-3 times per week to maintain the muscle mass I’ve added over the past year. My goal is to run the half marathon in < 1:59, about 10 minutes faster than my previous personal best. A mix of low-intensity distance running and higher-intensity anaerobic work should help speed up my mile splits, but this is pretty new territory for me. I know how to run far, but I’ve never learned how to run fast.
Other Miscellaneous Updates
Work remains challenging - I’m pretty regularly clocking 50-60 hours per week, and the intensity of those hours drives my stress levels from a 4/10 to a 9/10 depending on the day, week, and project. Despite the challenges, I’m getting sharper professionally. My skillset is getting stronger, and my confidence is growing.
Life is San Francisco has gotten pretty cool. I didn’t love the city at first, but we’ve made some really strong friendships and feel ourselves planting roots. A few examples:
I’ve started hosting friends for UFC Fight Nights every 6-8 weeks
I’m an absolutely atrocious surfer, but I’m catching waves once every month or so in Pacifica
My girlfriend and I have started to inter-mix our workplace friend groups, making for a fun melting pot of people we hang out with
For my 30th birthday in a few months, Emilie and I are planning a trip to Japan, which is weirdly accessible from the West coast, sort of a mid-career right of passage for the millennial Big Tech worker.
I won’t be posting pieces of writing every week, but I’m hoping to post more often now that the CSCS exam is done. More to come in time.