re: Weighty topic.

While Merrill is right to be a bit embarrassed about his obsession with weight, historically, that has been the primary driver of fitness programs in this country - people want to lose weight and look better, right? And with the proliferation of "paleo challenges" and the Zone diet throughout Crossfit affiliates, that hasn't changed with Crossfit.

I think one significant alteration, however, is that in addition to how much you weigh or what you look like, Crossfit tracks your performance. Ideally, you're looking better, but you're also getting stronger, not just skinnier. Robb Wolf, author of The Paleo Diet and owner of one of the first Crossfit gyms, hammers that point regularly in his podcast and blog - how do you look, feel and perform? - and was a key to changing the way I approached eating for performance. I've changed from a pretty strict Zone diet that counted macronutrients to eating fairly paleo-ish, but however much I want.

The tough thing for me is that I believe my natural state is to eat less than I need to properly fuel a program like CFE, so it's a constant battle to actually eat enough. And after all, the whole point of me doing CFE is to try to keep the modest strength I've gained, not lose it and waste away into an endurance runner.

One thing I would point out to you, Merrill, is that it's no longer about calories in/calories out, it's more about what type of calories are coming in. You're already working out like it's the 1980s, you should at least be eating like it's 2013 (or 300,000 years ago, depending). And as you readily admit, who knows really how many calories are going out depending on the Lifecycle settings or your heart rate monitor, so what's the point?

Clearly, you're not the only one thinking about all of this Merrill, and I'm sad to admit I've led many email exchanges in our Crossfit group about weight and "diet." Interestingly, the women in our group never contribute to those discussions.

Also: Merrill, how was the costume party? And what was your costume? I'm thinking "teen anorexic." The blog needs some pictures.