Angie Ripped Me A New One

Last night marked the beginning of a new month at Crossfit Central which means benchmark workout time.  The workout was Angie.  Angie is a scary lady and usually strikes fear and dread in the hearts of most Crossfitters.  I first met Angie back at the beginning of April and I approached her then from mostly an ignorance is bliss frame of mind having no idea how grueling she could actually be and finding out the hard way.  This is what she looks like:

100 pull ups
100 push ups
100 sit ups
100 squats
20 minute time limit (Coach Crystal imposes a 9 minute cutoff time on pull ups since people tend to get stuck there and don't get the chance to move on to the other moves)

Our first meeting played out like this:

85 pull ups using the green band
100 push ups on my knees
100 sit ups
0 squats

That evening I finished the squats at home and felt like I had totally shredded every muscle fiber in my forearms.  The next day I could not straighten my arms and watched my elbows, biceps and triceps swell into what looked like elephantitis of the arms that lasted for about a week and a half.

Having smoked the Spartan 300 this past Saturday, I was feeling a little cocky, I figured if I could complete 50 pull ups, 50 deadlifts, 50 push ups, 50 box jumps, 50 floor wipes and 50 kettlebell presses in 17:55 that I could surely kick Angie's a$$.  I felt confident that I would get all 100 pull ups, after all I was just shy 15 back in April and since I am so much stronger now the 100 push ups, sits ups and squats that follow seemed like a walk in the park. I had no fear of a recurrence of arm elephantitis since I am now kipping on the blue band and thisclose to my first bandless kipp.  But Angie is a cunning b**** and she is laughing her a$$ off at me today.  Here's how our second meeting went down:

55 pull ups using the blue band
95 push ups on my knees
100 sit ups
30 squats

So what the HELL happened?!!!  Let's start with the pull ups, the bar I was on had been taped where my left hand was positioned and my callouses started to blister right away from the rough surface.  On about pull up #40 one of the callouses/blisters on my hand ripped.  This slowed me wayyyy down, taking 2 or 3 pu's at a time until the pain just became too much and I decided it wasn't worth it to shred my hand any further.  Not to make excuses, but I know I could have gotten all 100 pull ups had I not ripped!  This month Crystal set a time limit of 5 minutes on push ups.  Between the stinging sweat dripping down onto my open wound and the pressure of the ground beneath my hand causing pain my push ups came more slowly than they should have and ended up on my knees to boot.  Crystal called time before I could squeeze in the remaining 5 so it was on to sit ups which were tough but I knocked them out and moved onto squats which were easy but time just ran out.  Once more, Angie won.  No one in class finished the WOD and I stayed after class to complete my remaining 70 squats but did not even go near the pull up bar. 

During our cool down Coach Crystal congratulated us all on surviving another Angie and remarked that it maybe the last time we ever meet Angie because they are thinking of retiring her.  You see Angie beats down most everyone who dares to look her in the eye so they have deemed her not an appropriate benchmark workout.  I got the feeling that the general consensus of my classmates was a feeling good riddance but believe it or not this news really disappoints me.  You see, despite my past meetings with this fierce lady, I still want more shots at her because I really believe that one day I will rip her a new one :-)

I Smoked It!!!

My Spartan 300 Challenge that is :-) 

Workout:
25 Pullups
50 Dealifts
50 Pushups
50 Box Jumps
50 Floor Wipes
50 Kettlebell Presses
25 Pullups
20 minute cut-off

I kicked off training for this challenge back on May 8th with a benchmark workout which I did not finish in the 20 minutes time limit.  I made it through 38 kettlebell presses which left me 12 kb presses and 25 pullups short of finishing.  So I set a goal of just finishing the final workout.  This past Saturday I not only finished the workout, I SMOKED IT in 17:55!!!

In addition to that goal I also set the following goals for the 7 week challege and saw them come to fruition:

Lose 5 more lbs - CHECK!  I've lost a total of 15 lbs since March 15th, the day I commited to eating Paleo.
Lose 3% more body fat - CHECK!  Total body fat lost since March 15th is now 8% :-)
Reduce overall inches - CHECK!  4 more inches lost for a total of 20" overall since March 15th.
Overcome my fear of box jumps on the 21" box - CHECK!

The only goal I did not meet was my goal of getting 1 kipping pullup without a band.  I'm thisclose and am confident it will happen any day now.  I've got the body mechanics down just need to add more power to the hip thrust and push off the top of the bar to get my chin over the bar.

I not only see the results of my new found way of eating and my Crossfit workout in my time on Saturday but how I felt during the workout itself.  I felt much stronger, not needing to rest as much during the workout and my recovery post work out was so much faster than on the May 8th workout.  This Saturday I went from the workout to a vinyasa yoga class an hour later and had a great practice, double and triple dipping chatarangas and feeling strong through out the entire class!  On Sunday I took a 9 a.m. hatha flow class still feeling strong, double and triple dipping chatarangas and then ran 5 miles that evening.  Muscle soreness is minimal and I'm ready for today's WOD of 5 burpees and 5 shuttle runs 5 times for time!

Post challenge I realize how much Crossfit and Paleo have become a lifestyle for me.  My motivation to hit the gym has not waivered and I did not feel the need to celebrate the challenge end by eating something crazy.  My Challenge morning pre-workout meal was a cup of green tea and a banana with almond butter.  Post workout I had 11 oz of coconut water and enjoyed a delicious lunch of a 96% lean hamburger patty with guacomole, spring greens, beets, cabbage, and cucumbers after yoga class.  For dinner Mr. X who cheered me on during my workout and dutifully held the chalk bucket for me during my final 25 pullups gifted me with an incredible dry aged steak which I ate along with mushrooms sauteed with garlic in olive oil and red wine, grilled organic sweet vidalia onions and a decadent bottle of Spottswoode 2006 Cab, a very generous and greatly appreciated gift from a friend's personal wine collection.

So my journey continues with the same enthusiasm and I've set these goals for the next 4 weeks:

Lose 5 more lbs by July 30th
Lose 3% more body fat by July 30th

Just in case you are wondering about the significance of July 30th, I am headed to Vegas to celebrate my little sister's 40th b'day and I want to look younger than her poolside at the Wynn ;-)

Tortoise or Hare

This week marks the half point in the 7 week training period for the Sparatan 300 Challenge.  I have only 3 1/2 more weeks to do the work to make my goals.  When I decided to take on this challenge I did so as a way to track the progress I'm making on this CF journey not so much to ramp up my workouts and become more stringent in my diet.  Don't get me wrong, I definitely am working towards becoming stronger, faster and leaner but doing so while maintaining balance in my life.

As a part of our training for this event, participants have received weekly communications that contain 4 additional workouts for each week on top of the Crossfit classes we already attend.  I'm not whining, quitting or trying to make any deals here but between working my day job, teaching 4 yoga classes in the evenings a week, 2 Crossfit classes, 2 public yoga classes, and 1-2 runs, a social and love life, I've been finding it difficult to work in all 4 additional workouts a week.  I've done at least 1 and some weeks 2 but it's been a real struggle to get in all 4 unless I give up one of my runs or yoga classes.  While I LOVE CF, I'm not ready to sacrafice yoga and running to get in those extra WOD's.  I need an equal dose of all 3 of those disciplines to keep me balanced in my mind, body and spirit.

Despite not having done all 4 extra weekly workouts over the past 3 weeks, I feel much stronger and it's evident by the PR's I continue to experience in my workouts.  The fit of my clothes show me that I'm much leaner than I was on May 8th and I am actually comfortable putting on shorts again.  As far as my goals for the challenge go, will I meet my goal of finishing the 300?  I think I'm most definitely closer now than I was 3 weeks ago.  Will I be able to do 1 kipping pull up without a band?  Not so sure about that one, but I'll keep working on it.  Will I be 5 lbs lighter and have 3% less body fat?  Maybe but I'm not so worried about it because I know that will come in time if I continue on this path.  What I do know for sure, is that if I allow CF to swallow up all of my time my chances of long term success will be in jeopardy.  I need this balance to keep me in this for the long haul and that's my top goal.  Time and again I've heard stories from people who go gung-ho like the Hare in Aesops fable in order to meet a goal and once they hit it they crash, burn and back slide.  I don't want that to happen to me so instead I plan to be more like the Tortoise taking a slower pace but in it for the long haul to not just finish strong at the end of these 7 weeks but to continue way beyond that.

Food and Fuel Log:

Friday 5-28-10

Breakfast 8:00 a.m.
3 egg whites with 1/2 c green peppers and onions cooked in 1 tsp coconut oil

Lunch 12:00 a.m.
1/4 lb baby back ribs
field greens with beets, cabbage, carrots and basalmic vinegarette

Snack 2:00 p.m.
1/4 lb turkey breast
1/2 c cantloupe

Dinner 9:00 p.m.
4 oz ribeye
spinach and mushrooms sauteed in olive oil, red wine and garlic
2 paleo margaritas
1 glass red wine

Workout:
3 mile run

Saturday 2-29-10

Breakfast 8:15 a.m.
1/2 c canteloupe
1 oz proscuitto

Snack 10:00 a.m.
1/2 Cashew Cookie Larabar

Lunch 12:30 a.m.
1/4 lb babyback ribs
field greens with beets, cabbage, carrots and basalmic vinegarette

Snack 4:00 p.m.
1 oz smoked turkey breast

Dinner 8:30 p.m.
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 c guacamole
grilled onions
artichoke hearts, black olives, cucmbers, cherry tomatoes in olive oil and basalmic vinegar
2 bites of raw coconut no-cheese cheese cake and raw cacoa brownie
2 paleo margaritas

Sunday 5-30-10

Breakfast 9:00 a.m.
Paleo Pancakes

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
2 oz smoked turkey breast
1/2 c guacamole

Snack 2:00 p.m.
1/2 Cashew Cookie Larabar

Snack 4:00 p.m.
handful of cashews

Dinner 6:30 p.m.
4 oz filet mignon
1/2 c mushrooms sauteed in olive oil and red wine
1 c broccoli salad with bacon, mayo, craisins and almonds
2 paleo margaritas
2 glasses red wine (hey, I was dinning at a home with a wine cellar and my host insisted that I sample some of his collection, I couldn't insult the guy!)

Workout:
50 Push Ups

50 Lunges
50 Supermans
2.5 Mile Run
15 reps of plank variation core work

Monday 5-31-10

Breakfast 9:30 a.m.
Paleo Pancakes

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
2 oz smoked turkey breast
1/2 c guacamole

Snack 3:00 p.m.
2 bites raw coconut no-cheese cheesecake, no-bake cacoa brownie

Snack 6:30 p.m.
handful of pistachios

Dinner 8:45 p.m.
1/2 lb babyback ribs
field greens with carrots, cabbage, beets and basalmic vinegar

Workout:
4 mile run

MIA

I've been MIA since last week because my life was CRAZY BUSY but I'm back with a run down of meals and workouts :-)

Friday 5/21/10 - This was the night of my monthly Goddess Gathering Dinner with my girlfriends and they really liked the Paleo meal especially Jess's Artichoke Salad and the Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate w/strawberries and Macaroons :-)


Breakfast 8:00 a.m.
1/4 c onion
1/4 c green pepper
1/4 c mushrooms
1/2 c egg whites
1 tsp coconut oil

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
4 oz smoked turkey
field greens, beets, cabbage, carrots w/basalmic vinegar, olive oil, honey and garlic salt dressing

Snack 2:00 p.m.
1/2 c canteloupe
2 oz oven roasted turkey

Dinner 8:00 p.m.
2 Paleo Margaritas
Oven baked fish topped with sauce of tomatoes, olives, capers, onions and garlic sautéed in olive oil
Oven roasted zucchini and squash
Artichoke, tomato, cucumber, olive, salad mixed with basil, basalmic vinegar and olive oil
Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate, strawberries, macaroon

Saturday 5/22/10

Breakfast 9:45 a.m.
1 banana
1 tbsp almond butter

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
Oven baked fish topped with sauce of tomatoes, olives, capers, onions and garlic sautéed in olive oil
Oven roasted zucchini and squash
Artichoke, tomato, cucumber, olive, salad mixed with basil, basalmic vinegar and olive oil

Snack 4:00 p.m.
Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate and strawberries

Dinner 8:30 p.m.
Hamburger patty w/guacamole, sautéed onions and peppers
2 paleo margaritas
1 glass red wine

Workout:
4 mile run - 8:30 a.m.
Vinyasa Yoga - 10:30 a.m.

Sunday 5/23/10

Breakfast 9:00 a.m.
Paleo Pancakes

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
1 poached egg
1 slice Canadian bacon
1 slice salami
1 slice ham
Spinach with strawberries tossed in champagne vinagerette

Snack 4:30 p.m.
Handful pistachios

Dinner 8:00 p.m.
Oven baked fish topped with sauce of tomatoes, olives, capers, onions and garlic sautéed in olive oil
Oven roasted zucchini and squash
Artichoke, tomato, cucumber, olive, salad mixed with basil, basalmic vinegar and olive oil

Workout 5:30 p.m.:

#1
12 Ring Rows
18 Sit ups
24 Walking Lunges
5 Rounds

#2
21 Box Step Up and Jump Down on 21” box
21 Dumbell Deadlifts 20#
3 Rounds

For Good Measure:
10 Burpees

And then:
4 mile walk

Monday 5/24/10

Breakfast 8:00 a.m.
1/4 c onion
1/4 c green pepper
1/4 c mushrooms
1/2 c egg whites
1 tsp coconut oil

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
4 oz Turkey
field greens, beets, cabbage, carrots w/basalmic vinegar, olive oil, honey and garlic salt dressing

Snack 4:00 p.m.
1 c cantaloupe
2 oz turkey

Dinner 8:30
3 oz salmon
Oven roasted asparagus tossed in olive oil with garlic salt and pepper
¼ c Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate and 2 strawberries

Workout:
Strength Drill - 3 60 second handstands
WOD:
12 Ring Row
6 Dumbbell Snatch (3l/3r - @ 25#)
3 Burpees
AMRAP

I did ring rows the night before in place of pull ups in my Spartan 300 additional workout so my shoulders were pretty tired. I was able to do all 36 ring rows on Sunday with straight legs but had resort to bent knees after the first 12 :-( In order to not overwork my right shoulder I used 15# dumbbell on the snatch. Finished 6 full rounds and got through 4 ring rows in the 7th round.

On Tuesday I had to attend a conference in Dallas so I had to pack a food that was portable and non-perishable and that would be light and compact as I had to carry it in my purse all day long.  It was a challenge to eat as many fresh fruits and vegetables I typically would and I did have to rely on a Larabar and Paleo Treats but I was able to stay Paleo for the entire trip :-)  Lunch was a big texas style bbq but since I did not know where the meat was from I ate salami that I brought from home.  They did serve cole slaw with no mayo and grilled vegetable that were actually tasty. 

I typically do Vinyasa yoga as my workout on Tuesdays so I missed my class being out of town so I took a rest day and went to watch my nephew's baseball game and to dinner with my family after.
Tuesday 5/25/10

Breakfast 8:00 a.m.
1/4 c onion
1/4 c green pepper
1/4 c mushrooms
1/2 c egg whites
1 tsp coconut oil

Snack 10:00 a.m.
1 cashew cookie Larabar

Lunch 12:30 p.m.
½ c cole slaw
1 c grilled veggies
1 oz salami

Snack 4:00 p.m.
1 Paleo Treat Mac Attack

Dinner 7:30 p.m.
Shrimp sautéed in oil with green peppers and onions with guacamole
2 Paleo margaritas
½ Paleo Treat Cacao Now


Wednesday 5/26/10

Breakfast 7:00 a.m.
Paleo Pancakes

Snack 10:00 a.m.
Stopped at Starbucks to a coffee to which I added Sugar in the Raw and Half and Half :-(

Lunch 11:45 a.m.
Field greens with beets, cabbage, carrots and basalmic vingarette
4 oz smoked turkey breast

Snack 4:00 p.m.
2 oz smoked turkey breast
1 c canteloupe

Dinner 8:45 p.m.
11 oz coconut water
1/2 lb baby back ribs
2 zucchini and 2 squash oven roasted in olive oil, garlic salt and pepper
1/4 c Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate

Workout:
Strength - Squat Clean 5x1 - 45#, 65#, 70#, 80#, 95# - Crystal said that I was lifting too light because the bar was "floating" so I need to go heavier next time.
WOD:
Tabata - For twenty seconds do as many reps of the assigned exercise as you can - then rest 10 seconds. Repeat this seven more times for a total of 8 intervals, 4 minutes total exercise.  The score is the least number of reps for any of the eight intervals. 
Pull Ups - Highest 10/ Lowest 5
Pushup - Highest 10/ Lowest 5 (I did the 1st 10 on my toes but had to drop to knees for the rest)
Sit Ups - Highest 13/ Lowest 10
Squats - Highest 15/ Lowest 12
This one wore me out.  I started strong but faded pretty fast in pull ups and push ups but maintained a stronger pass in sit ups and squats.

Bye Bye Larabar :-(

I'm sad to announce that Coach Crystal has suggested that I part ways with Larabar.  It seems this yummy treat is the culprit of my weight loss stagnation.  I have been stuck at 11 lbs for a couple of weeks now and after reviewing my food log Coach Crystal deemed my 1-2 Larabar habit my problem.  She said everything else looked great with the exception of the Larabars and my over indulgence in red wine this past weekend.  So I made a vow to wean off the Larabars starting today.  I decided that I would start with eating 1/2 of a bar a day until I depleted my stash of 3 remaining bars.  Today I savoured 1/2 of a Chocolate Hazelnut bar and put the rest away for another day.  I'm gonna miss you Larabar :-(

Yesterday's workout was bitter sweet.  I rocked the deadlifts.  I PR'ed it with 130# which happens to be my goal body weight so essentially I deadlifted the me I want to be :-)  We didn't get to run in our warm-up which really sucked because I love to run.  Our WOD was straight forward, 15 kettlebell swings and 10 jerks, 5 rounds, 12 minute time limit.  My right shoulder is still wonky and after Monday's WOD of clean and jerks I knew I had to baby it so I used a wimpy 45# bar for my jerks and a 14 kg kettlebell for my swings.  I finished in 8:30, second only to Jess but I didn't feel victorious.  The weights were not challenging enough so I was able to breeze through the WOD and that disappointed me.  I would rather finish dead last, dead tired, seeing stars, puking and about to pass out than to finish 1st or 2nd with no real effort.  Crystal asked me if the weight was ok during my workout, I think she could tell it was too easy and I explained about my crapped out shoulder.  She said it was better to go lighter and repair and strengthen the shoulder than to push and cause real damage.  She's right and I know it but I only get 2 chances a week to have my a** kicked and I just feel cheated that I walked out of there last night without feeling like I had been whooped.

I'm having difficulty getting in my extra workouts again this week.  So far I have managed to do none of them and it's Thursday.  They're tougher than last week so doubling up could be an issue and my weekend is jammed packed!  :-(

It's my turn to host the monthly Goddess Gathering with my girlfirends tomorrow night.  I have planned a completely Paleo meal:

Cocktails:
Norcal/Paleo Margarita

Appetizers:
Salmon Carpaccio with lemon vinegarette
Melon wrapped prosciutto drizzled with basalmic vinegar

Entree:
Pescado a la Veracruzana
Grilled squash and zucchini
Jess's artichoke salad

Dessert:
Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate
Strawberries
Macaroons

My fuel for yesterday and today looked like this:

Wednesday 5/19/10

Breakfast 8:00 a.m.
1/4 c onion
1/4 c green pepper
1/4 c mushrooms
1/2 c egg whites
1 tsp coconut oil

Snack 10:30 a.m.
1 Chocolate Hazelnut Larabar :-(

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
2 oz oven roasted turkey
field greens, beets, cabbage, carrots w/basalmic vinegar, olive oil, honey and garlic salt dressing

Snack 4:00 p.m.
1/2 c canteloupe
1 oz salami

Dinner 8:45
4 shrimp sauteed in olive oil
oven roasted asparagus cooked in olive oil and garlic salt
1/4 c Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate

Thursday 5/20/10

Breakfast 8:00 a.m.
1/4 c onion

1/4 c green pepper
1/4 c mushrooms
1/2 c egg whites
1 tsp coconut oil

Snack 10:30 a.m.
1/2 Chocolate Hazelnut Larabar :-(

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
4 shrimp sauteed in olive oil
field greens, beets, cabbage, carrots same dressing as yesterday

Snack 4:00 p.m.
1/2 c canteloupe
2 oz oven roasted turkey

Dinner 8:45 p.m.
1/2 c egg whites
1 tsp coconut oil
1 banana
1/2 tbsp almond butter
1 oz salami
3 pistachios
1/4 c Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate

Pretty random dinner but I could not decide what to eat and had no food to put together a real meal even after going to WF's to buy groceries for tomorrow night's dinner.  Oh well, c'est la vie!

Bath and bed are calling, nighty-night :-)

It's all in the delivery

Until March 15th I was a vegetarian for many years and a vegan for quite a few.  I chose to be a vegetarian for many reasons including health and moral issues.  No one else in my family was vegetarian and other than my yoga friends I was mostly surrounded by people who included meat in their diet.  The reaction to my dietary choice from meat eaters varied but typically included teasing, often time condescending questions and even the sadistic need of some to try and upset me by describing the gory details of slaughter and consumption of animals in a way they found humorous.  I truly never judged non-vegetarians and explained that to people whenever I was "outed" but I always had a sense of being judged.  I never tried to "convert" anyone and  certainly never harassed anyone about their choice to consume flesh.  It took a long time to realize that the reactions I was receiving had nothing to do with me but where entirely about the other person. 

Naively I thought that by going Paleo the world of meat eaters would embrace me with delight and welcome me back into their fold.  I was actually relieved that I would no longer feel the need to defend myself or to put others at ease, boy was I wrong!  I feel more isolated than ever.  Vegetarians find it baffling that I would make the switch to meat and give up dairy, a protein source staple for many vegetarians and  grains and legumes, also staples of the vegetarian diet.  As for meat eaters, I'm finding that most can not fathom a big juicy steak without a cheesy, buttery potato and a meal without bread.  I find myself explaining and defending myself now more than ever and it can become pretty tiring.

For good reason I have a great deal of enthusiasm about my new way of eating.  I have experienced tangible results:  11 lbs of weight loss, 16 inches total loss, 3% body fat loss, no more bloaty belly and digestive issues, more energy, no more joint pain, PR's in my workouts and runs, more stamina and strength in my yoga practice and finally feeling satisfied after eating a meal.  So it stands to reason that I want to share the secret to my success with everyone especially people who are struggling with weight loss, lethargy, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, joint pain, allergies, etc.  I expected everyone, especially these people to welcome information that is proven to work and could relieve them of any suffering they are experiencing but I'm finding that's not often the case.  When I describe the paleo way of eating it seems to be an immediate turn off and I think I have discovered the reason why.  It's not so much the diet, it's my delivery of the information about paleo eating that's the problem.  Typically, I begin by telling the person I eat a paleo diet and then rattling off the litany of "no-no" foods and that immediately turns people off!  They only hear what sounds like some cuckoo, crazy strict diet so you can imagine how thrilled I was to find the info below over at Whole 9 .

When asked, “What’s this diet you’re on?”, most Paleo people approach their response entirely the wrong way. The first thing we mention are all the things we DON’T eat – grains, dairy, legumes, sugar and processed foods. Trouble is, there is probably at least ONE of those food groups in their listener’s diet, and starting the discussion with a judgment of their dietary choices (whether real or imagined) immediately puts the listener on the defensive. (As we say in our How to Win Friends post, us Paleo people have the ability to make people feel bad about what they’re doing, JUST by doing what we’re doing.) In addition, jumping into the foods you don’t eat first immediately closes off further conversation if the listener jumps to some fast conclusions about your level of dietary fanaticism, or the restrictive nature of your self-imposed regimen. (For most people, not eating ANY of those food groups is hard to wrap your head around.) Finally, that kind of lead-off also places you in the unfortunate position of then having to justify from a scientific (“prove it”) perspective why the foods you don’t eat are actually not that good for you. And as many of you have discovered, that’s darn near impossible when up against a lifetime of “milk gives you strong bones”, “whole grains have extra nutrition” and “black beans are a good source of protein”.)


So we approached our Paleo pitch from a different angle – emphasizing the foods we DO eat, why we eat them, and the general (and well documented) health benefits associated with the foods we choose. And then we seal the deal with a personal testimonial – how this way of eating has affected YOU, personally. It’s hard to argue with, “Since going Paleo, I put 25# on my deadlift, cut my 5K time by 5:00, lost 10 pounds, and my skin has totally cleared up”, right?

So here’s our final version – Whole9 Paleo Elevator Pitch. Give it a read, give it a test run with the next person you see, and share your thoughts, feedback, experiences and suggestions in comments.

The Whole9 Nutrition Elevator Pitch


I eat “real” food – fresh, natural food like meat, vegetables and fruit. I choose foods that are nutrient dense, with lots of naturally-occurring vitamins and minerals, over foods that have more calories but less nutrition. And food quality is important – I’m careful about where my meat comes from, and buy produce locally and organically as often as possible.


It’s not a low calorie “diet” – I eat as much as I need to maintain strength, energy and a healthy weight. In fact, my diet is probably much higher in fat than you’d imagine. Fat isn’t the enemy – it’s a great energy source when it comes from high quality foods like avocado, coconut and nuts. And I’m not trying to do a “low carb” thing, but since I’m eating vegetables and fruits instead of bread, cereal and pasta, it just happens to work out that way.


Eating like this is good for maintaining a healthy metabolism, and reducing inflammation within the body. It’s been doing great things for my energy levels, body composition and performance in the gym. It also helps to minimize my risk for a whole host of lifestyle diseases and conditions, like diabetes, heart attack and stroke.

I made an appointment for my annual physical for Monday, June 28th.  I intentionally set it for that date because I will have been eating paleo for 60+ days and will have completed my 7 week Spartan 300 Challenge training and final workout on June 26th.  I am really curious to see how my lab results will compare to years' past.  Mr. X and my parents who are both in the medical field are a bit skeptical about how eating so much  meat and eggs will affect my cholesterol levels.  Hopefully the results will be good enough to convince them that they should join me in my "fanatical, restrictive, self-imposed regime" :-)

Last night's Vinyasa class with Lilyana was just what I needed and  Malia's adjustments made my heart and body sing :-)  Tonight Coach Crystal's workout  will have my glutes and hammies screaming and my shoulders crying uncle:

Strength:
5 x 3 deadifts

WOD:
5 Rounds
15 swings (16kg)
10 Jerks (75#)

Fuel Log 5/18/10:

Breakfast 8:00 a.m.

½ c egg whites
¼ c green pepper
¼ c onions
¼ c mushrooms
1 tsp coconut oil

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
5 slices brisket
Field greens, cabbage, carrots, beets w/dressing of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey and garlic salt

Snack 2:00 p.m.
Chocolate Hazelnut Larabar

Snack 6:00 p.m.
1 oz oven roasted turkey

Dinner 8:45 p.m.
11 oz coconut water
3 oz baked salmon
oven roasted asparagus w/olive oil and garlic salt
1/3 baked sweet potato, mashed with 1 tsp coconut butter, sprinkled w/cinnamon
¼ c Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate

Anyone who knows me well, can tell you that I have an issue with control as in I need to be in control of my schedule, my time, my environment at all times.  I could go into all of my self-psychoanalyzed theories on why but I won't bore you with such nonsense.  Over the past few years at the suggestion and encouragement of Mr. X, I've been working on this and I'm making progress. 

This weekend my family visited from Georgia, Dallas and El Paso.  We are a group of strong personalities, all with our own ideas and agendas.  For this reason, family visits can become a huge source of anxiety for me.  Don't get me wrong, I love my family dearly and truly enjoy being with them but the loss of control over my "life" is very uncomfortable for me.

My family is originally from the the south, and I mean the REAL SOUTH, as in Alabama where all family get togethers center around food and not very healthy food at that.  I knew there would be dinning out experiences with limited options for me and food sources that might not be ideal.  As an exercise of letting go of my need for total control, I decided that during this visit I would go with the flow while maintaining my paleo diet as best I could without obsessing over whether all the ingredients in the food where organic, free-range, grass feed or pastured and to put family time first working in the 4 additional Spartan 300 Challenge workouts I had been assigned for the week during any free time I had.
 
Family time began Thursday evening with a trip to Guerro's for Tex Mex.  Since I work my day job until 4:00 and then teach yoga until 7:15 on Thursdays I originally planned to start family time on Friday with dinner.  I had planned to go home and knock out one of my 4 workouts but my family chose a restaurant close to where I live and it was my sister's birthday so I went to dinner.  I felt a tinge of panic at the idea that I had these 4 workouts to get in over the jammed packed weekend but rationalized that I still had Fri, Sat and Sun and it was possible to double up on a day if I needed to.  I wasn't too worried about the food situation at Guerro's since shrimp fajitas with guacamole sans tortillas is always a safe paleo bet .  The only stumbling block I could foresee was the alcohol during the week rule.  It was my sister's 40th birthday and how could I not drink a margarita in celebration with her?  So I made a deal with myself to limit myself to 1 margarita. 

My family ordered chips and queso for appetizers which pre-paleo was my FAVORITE thing in the world to eat but by the Grace of God I no longer have a desire for.  Some of them ordered enchiladas for dinner which used to be my 2nd favorite thing in the world to eat but also no longer have a desire for them.  I was content to eat my shrimp, onions, green peppers and mushrooms with a side of sliced avocado instead of guacamole since Guerro's for some reason beyond me puts sour cream in their guac!!!  Thank god I confirmed with the waiter while ordering that there was no grains, dairy, legumes or sugar in anything I had ordered.  I was shocked when he filled me in on the guacamole secret ingredient and glad I went through the litany of "no-no" foods with him.  So far so good, I stuck to paleo.  YAY ME!!!  But the night was young and we were all having such a good time and the 1st margarita was so good, that I rationalized ordering a second because this was a special occassion.  Not so good of me but at least I stopped at 2 and they were paleo meaning just tequilia, lime, water and salt.

Day 2, Friday, I didn't meet up with my family until dinner.  I was able to get in my endurance and overhead press workouts, 2 down, 2 to go.  My sister made the family's dinner plans at a kid friendly restaurant.  It was an Italian restaurant that specialized in pizza, pasta and panninis.  I checked out the menu on line to establish my eating game plan and decided to go with either a side of meatballs with marinara or grilled Italian sausage with a salad or a side or grilled veggies and 2 glasses of wine max.  When placing my order, I went through the "no-no" list and discovered that the meatballs had cheese in them :-( so I went with the sausage.  The grilled vegetables, zucchini, squash, mushrooms and onions sounded more nutritious than then salad choices so I went with that.  I was pretty hungry and didn't know how long the food would take so I ordered Affettati for an appetizer and offered up the none paleo items to my family while I enjoyed the prosciutto and salami.   I was surprised that the grilled sausage and veggies were actually tasty and the wine was delicious, so delicious that I went over my 2 glass max.  Shame on me!  :-(

Saturday, Day 4 started out well.  I managed to avoid breakfast at my family's hotel even though my mother was all but begging me to come have breakfast with them.  I knew that our trip to Fredericksburg that day would offer less than the best choices for quality food for lunch so I knew I better stay home for breakfast.  That was an excellent call on my part because I ended up eating a questionable hamburger patty with tasteless guacamole and a pityful side salad for lunch.  Thank God for Larabars!  I had 2 that day to stave off hunger as my mother, aunt and sister induldged in sugary sweets from a bakery to make up for the crappy lunch they too had endured.

My mother and aunt who shop for sport but should make it a profession took our trip to Fredericksburg into overtime so I did not make it back in time to squeeze in the 2 remaining workouts I had left for the week but I reminded myself I was going with the flow, doing well with the food thing and could double up the workout on Sunday.

My mother had asked that I select a restaurant for dinner Saturday night.  I chose Perla's.  They have incredibly fresh seafood and are willing to prepare anyway you like.  Everyone in my family loves seafood so this was a win-win for us all.  We started with raw oysters that were incredible.  My family also nibbled on the hushpuppies that I remembered being absolutely delicious from my pre-paleo days but thankfully was not tempted by that night.  I had grilled sea bass with chimichurri sauce on the side and split a side of spinach and brussell sprouts with my sister.  Good job ME, I had been able to do Paleo all day, no problem.  However my 2 drink max rule went out the window, not so good me :-(   A pre-dinner margarita followed by an incredible malbec at dinner then after dinner drinks at my favorite bar Peche with Mr. X, my sister, brother-in-law, aunt and uncle was a casuality of going with the flow but a great time with my family!

I woke up Sunday, Day 5 exhausted from going non-stop, lack of sleep and overindulging in good wine and tequilia.  We all met up at Magnolia for breakfast were I promptly ordered a coffee, proceeded to add sugar in the raw and milk which I have not had in 2 months.  It did give me a little pick me up but also a slight case of the caffeine and sugar shakes.  I stuck to the paleo plan avoiding pancakes and ordered an egg white omelet full of veggies and a side of bacon.  Still dragging, Mr. X and I ran by Starbucks and picked up another round of coffee before heading over to my family's hotel to just hang out even though those 2 workouts were looming over my head. 

The inevitable caffeine and sugar crash ocurred so Mr. X drove us home for a nap.  By the time I woke up it was time for dinner so we made the trek out to the Salt Lick.  I hadn't eaten at the Salt Lick since becoming a carnivore.  I don't know who was more excited about me eating real Texas BBQ for the first time, me or my family.  I'd always taken my own food or eaten pickles and slaw sandwiches with bbq sauce and potato salad.  It was humorous to think that I would be avoiding the bread, bbq sauce and potato salad but gobbling up ribs, sausage and brisket.  I didn't realize that some of the meat would actually be pre-sauced and was a little diappointed to ingest hidden sugar.  I tried not to think of where the meat was from, if it was grass fed and grown with love and if the cabbage in the slaw had been sprayed with chemicals on the farm before it made it to my family's dinner table.  I did drink a liter of water I brought from home with my dinner and avoided dessert like the plague but managed to focus on the joy of being with my family and the crazy happiness they felt over my consuming meat along side them.

Following tearful goodbyes in the dusty parking lot of the Salt Lick, and feeling my heart being pulled out of my chest as I watched the tail lights of my family's car head west as Mr. X and I drove north, it hit me that I had actually had an incredible time, free of most of the stress and anxiety I typically felt during visits.  I suddenly realized that letting go of my need to control my "life" completely in the past 4 days had actually been an act of gaining control.

As I pushed my shopping cart through Whole Foods that evening filling it with all my paleo staples for the week, it occurred to me that this new way of eating has already become 2nd nature to me.  I was able to make it through a special occassion weekend without veering too far off course and getting back on track was a piece of cake :-)

Last night's workout was a killer!  We started with the usual warm-up minus the run as it was about to storm.  Our strenth practice was 3x5 deadhang pull-ups and then we did 10 medicine ball clean and jerk to prepare for the barbell c&j in the WOD.  Then it was off to the races, 10 rounds of Cindy:

5 pull-ups
10 pushups
15 air squats

Coach Crystal upped the ante and added in a set of clean and jerks to each round of Cindy.  She had us start with 10 c&j's for the 1st round, 9 for the second round, and continue on until we finished with just 1 in the last round. So in its completed state, that's a total of

50 pull-ups
100 pushups
150 air squats
55 clean and jerks

We had a time limit of 20 minutes but Crystal had to cut us off at 18 because we ran out of time.  RX weight on the c&j was 95# but I went with 50# which was plenty heavy for me!  I finished 5 rounds and did all but the last 5 pushups on my toes!  I also did all 30 warm-up pushups on my toes so I did a total of 75 toe pushups in my workout!!!  I did all my pull-ups during the WOD on the blue band with the exception of the last 5 which I used the green band for.  I did 25 pull-ups, 50 pushups, 75 air squats and 35 clean and jerks in 18 minutes.

Fuel Log for 5/17/10

Breakfast 7:45 a.m.
Paleo Pancakes

Lunch 12:00 p.m.
4 slices of lean briskets
field greens salad with beets, cabbage, carrots and dressing made of basalmic vinegar, olive oil, garlic salt and honey

Snack 4:00 p.m.
1/2 c canteloupe
1 oz salami

Snack 6:00 p.m.
1/2 Lemon Larabar

Dinner 8:45 p.m.
3 oz oven baked salmon
1/3 baked sweet potato mashed with 1 tsp coconut butter, sprinkled w/cinnamon
oven roasted asparagus tossed in olive oil and garlic salt
1/4 c Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate

Tonight is Black Swan Vinyasa Yoga class with the lovely Lilyana and I hope Malia Scott and her magic hands are there blessing us with adjustments :-)