Today's WOD

I've been a bad CrossFitter.  I couldn't even tell you the last time we went to CrossFit down in Findlay, and we've been bad about hitting the gym the past week.  H and I have been so busy with prepping him for the Army, job hunting, and all my Avon stuff (I've been recruiting new reps like crazy!) and we've really gotten out of the habit of the gym.  I hate it--I feel like I'm being a waste, and I feel more guilty than you can possibly imagine!  We've done a little bit of stuff around here, though.  We've done some weight circuits at the house, and H has been rucking to prep for the Army, so my weight hasn't been going up or anything...it just hasn't gone down either.  Putting on my bathing suit, though, you can clearly see that my love handles and muffin top are diminishing, and I'm leaning out!

H has to hit 22% body fat within the next week if he wants to get his special forces contract for the Army, so it's been strict Paleo around here.  I'm okay with that---I think I needed to refocus myself anyway.  I made homemade apple chips using our dehydrator the other day so I can have something to munch (thanks Sweets and Sneakers on the Go, which is written by a college friend of mine, for the idea!) and H made homemade beef jerky in the dehydrator so we can have some quick protein after the gym or on the road.  We've been eating a TON of eggs and steak lately, and I don't think our fridge has been without peppers in almost a month thanks to Berman Orchards in Port Clinton.  (They also have the most INCREDIBLE Georgia peaches, which we buy in large quantities since it's an hour drive for us to get there, but it's so worth it---if you're even remotely in the area, you need to make visiting Bergman's a top priority!) 

So we've been refocused on eating strict Paleo again to help H cut body fat, and man has it done wonders for him!!  He's leaning out like crazy and it's making me so jealous!  It's like he eats lean for 2 days and drops an inch off his waist; I eat lean for 2 weeks and I'm lucky if I drop an inch---soooOOOOooo unfair!  Stupid boys and their stupid ability to drop weight easy...  ::pout::

So I'm like 25 pounds from my goal weight, which makes me really happy because that means I've lost 20 pounds already.  I bought my wedding dress for our JoP wedding in November, and I'm hoping that they'll need to take it down a bit when I go in for my last fitting!  ::fingers crossed::  Today, though, H really kicked my butt at the gym.  Our CrossFit Findaly gym is currently being moved to a new location and won't reopen until August 8, so we did our own WOD at the local college rec center:

The Dirty Thirty (as named by H)
5 squat to hang clean to push presses with dumbells
5 push ups
5 overhead toss-and-catches with a medicine ball
5 burpees
5 flutter kicks

Do this circuit 6 times, resting 45 - 60 seconds between each set.

Oh.  My.  Gosh.  I didn't think it would end up being that bad.  It's only 5 of each exercise at a time, right?  This kicked my butt.  By the time I got done with my sixth set, I was pretty sure I was going to throw up.  My shoulders hurt, and I know that because of the squats I'll be hurting tomorrow for sure.  PS. Prior to our WOD, we ran and did hang-clean skill sets.  Ouch.  On the bright side, afterwards we jumped in the pool and relaxed for a bit---nothing feels better after a hot, sweaty workout than floating in a cool pool.

So now we're back on track.  I feel good great!  :)

xoxo, M

Little Victories

If I started Paleo/CrossFit just to enjoy the big victories, like finally hitting my goal weight or being able to push press 80% of my body weight or having all of my health problems disappear due to a new eating lifestyle, then I would never have a chance to celebrate (And lets be honest, I look for any chance to celebrate anything!  Hello, celebration drink!), and it would be so much harder to make it to the big victories (see above) if I didn't celebrate the little ones that pop up inbetween.

My current "little victories": 
-fitting into my shorts from last summer that a month ago I couldn't squeeze my thighs into, let alone the rest of my body
-being able to button up my dress pants that haven't fit me for over a year
-having more muscle control when I come down from a pull-up
-being able to run laps at the gym on the track without getting so winded I can't even make it all the way around one loop (yes, I was that out of shape...don't judge me...)
-successfully making it through 2 nights of CrossFit without giving up or throwing up

So grab your celebration drink (mine is water with a lime wedge) and toast to your own little victories!  Celebrate them, enjoy them, and remember that without the little victories there would be no big victories!

xoxo, M

Week Three: DONE!

My brother is in town visiting on weekend leave from the Army, so H and I dragged him out of bed at 8:30am yesterday to go to the gym with us.  JP took advantage of this in 2 ways:  1) to get some exercise in after all the junk food that he eats when he comes to town, and 2) to show off his awesome fitness powers (note: read that last part with extreme sarcasm--it's okay, he knows I love him!)  Of course, he also helps because he pushes H and I to challenge ourselves at the gym, gives his opinion about what exercises work best, and keeps us in check.

Having him there yesterday was great.  I got to show him how far I'm coming along with my weight loss and strength training, and he gave H and I some great encouragement at what we're doing.  He also showed H some of the stuff to expect with the Army, since that's where H will be heading in less than a year.  I did a lot of arms and back weight lifting, as well as worked on my abs.  I also challenged him to some medicine ball exercises, which he hates, so I feel like I sufficiently did my job challenging him!

Today marks the end of my third week on Paleo and really focusing on weight/strength training, and I'm pretty pleased!  Down almost 10 lbs (wavering between 8 lbs and 9 lbs) and I literally screamed and did a happy dance when I measured myself today--down 3 1/2 inches around my waist!  Soooo happy!

Also, H and I go to our first On-Ramp CrossFit class tomorrow evening!  I'm so excited, and I can't wait to see what adding CrossFit to our routine does for us.  Lots of updates to come, so stay tuned!

xoxo, M

My first callus!

Okay.  I know this is weird.  But I'm so proud that I have my very first callus from lifting!  At first, when H told me that I would get calluses, I was grossed out (especially because of how bad his hands are from calluses from lifting) but calluses are like a rite of passage in lifting, and I finally have my first one! 

H says it's just a baby callus, and to be honest you can barely see it, but it's a callus nonetheless, and I'm damn proud of it! I can't wait to get more of them.

Yes.  I'm weird.  And yes, I'm excited about the little things.

xoxo, M

6/8/2011

Mmmm arms day.
Yesterday I really focused on legs at the gym.  Here's my standard procedure:  Run for 30 minutes on the elliptical (roughly 2.25 miles), then hit the weights (bench presses and squats on the Jones machine, leg presses, arms, and back on the circuit machines).  Yesterday I ran and really focused on leg presses, leg curls, and using the medicine ball to do some CrossFit moves that really made my hammies mad at me  :)  But today, H came with me and really pushed me to do more with the weights. 

Truth: I have basically zero upper body strength.
Truth:  H is really pushing me to build my arm strength and back muscles.
Truth:  Every time I do a few more pounds on the bar, it's hard but I feel super proud when I can finally do it!

I also really struggle with form.  Keeping my elbows tucked in, coming all the way down and pushing all the way up, and really making each rep count.  Having H there today meant I pushed myself a lot harder than normal, but it also was a check up on my form, and it means that when I'm there tomorrow I'll be paying a lot more attention to that!  Good--I need to.  I need to get these sexy muscles going! ;)

We also had a really good chat about the whole weight-loss, Paleo, workout thing.  It made me feel a little more secure in what I'm doing, and I was able to really open up to him about things.  I just hope H appreciates/understands how serious I'm taking all of this and how important this is to me--Paleo and weight-lifting is truly changing my outlook on food, body image, self-confidence, and so much more. And I hope he knows how thankful I am to have him by my side as I do it.  <3

In the wonderful world of Paleo...
We made some kick-butt guac today, ala Chipotle-style.  Next time, I'm going to document our making of it and post it here, along with the recipe.  It's seriously so yummy, you don't even need anything to eat it with besides a spoon!
We also stocked up on red, yellow, and orange bell peppers at Meijer today since they were on sale for super cheap.  I sliced them up, cooked them with some sea salt and a little EVOO, and they are delicioso!!  Got to enjoy some super yummy steak tonight, too--always a good thing.

I <3 steak.
That is all.

xoxo, M

5/31/2011: Day 10

I'm thinking that maybe by keeping a blog and recording all of this, it will help me stay on track.  I like to blog.  It's cathartic.  So is this weight-loss, happy body image, healthy lifestyle track I'm on.  Seems logical to mix the two, no?  So here we go...

Day 10.  I'm down roughly 5lbs.  This actually surprised me, to the point that I had to get one of H's (the hubs) dumbells to put on the scale to check for accuracy.  I wasn't expecting to see results so soon, mainly because no other "diet" I've been on has shown me results this fast.  (Note: Paleo is not a diet, it's a healthy eating lifestyle.  It's a mindset.  It's a lot of eating like a caveman.  But it's meant to be a lifetime turnaround in the way you think about food.  Hence "diet" being in quotes.)  I know it's a lot of the clean eating--lean meat, veggies, and very few carbs only in the form of fruit--but I also know that my new found drive to workout is a big help. 

Muscles = Fat Eaters.  More muscle, less fat.  I like this idea a lot.  I need to measure myself against my starting measurements, although I'm sure there won't be a huge change there yet.  I have a long way to go on the muscles (think "wimpy, wimpy, wimpy" from the Hefty commercials) but I'm finding weight routines that work for me, especially thanks to the H and his love of lifting.  Soon I will be big and strong like bull ("Hefty, Hefty, Hefty!")

So day 10.  The terrifying "come to Jesus" moment is constantly in the back of my mind.  The thought of losing something so amazing in my life has terrified me into this whole thing, but now that I'm getting into a routine of it, it's actually becoming enjoyable.  Shhh!  Don't tell H--I don't want him to get his "I Told You So" look on his face just yet.  ;)  But I refuse to give up.  I have willpower.  I have incredible willpower.  And now I have an even more important (the MOST important) reason to put my willpower behind my health and body.

I'm now a Paleo People.

xoxo M