Back at it!

It was so difficult laying on white sandy beaches surrounded by crystal clear blue water sippy pineapple-y coconut drinks last week.... Ok, I lied, it was relaxing, but I couldn't stop thinking about the workouts I was missing! I don't like to take breaks! I spent last week in Aruba and though I couldn't crossfit and sticking with a strict diet was super hard, I still feel pretty good! First, yesterday I PR'd my power clean, lifting 140lbs! Yeeeeeah! I wanted 145 :(

We've had lots of new people starting at my box. I love seeing new people try crossfit for the first time, but I'm not going to lie, the bigger classes frustrate me a bit. This could be because I'm a bit obsessed as I've said before. I had a dream that I was working out with a bunch of new students and doing my typical grunting, weight throwing, yelling that I do and ended up scaring all of the new people away. Oops.

That didn't happen in real life. Though, I did get a few strange looks when I through the 145# to the ground and screamed at it. Meh. *shrug*

So, my favorite thing to talk about....foood! sadly, I haven't been cooking much paleo. Eating? absolutely. But Matt has cooked enough for a small army (or at least for him and I and some for Narodie too) for at least 3 days.

See that green stuff? It was amazing. Actually all of the food was great, but I think the kale deserves the spotlight here. I'll post that recipe in the food.

I did make bacon wrapped dates, though! Super simple, take a date, wrap it in a half a slice of bacon, (do this until you fill a pan/baking sheet/etc) then bake at 400 for like 20 min. (yeah I said "like" because I wanted my bacon super crispy and had to keep adding minutes and forgot to add it all up!)

Om nom nom :)

Coco-NUT

Is it bad that I see my crossfit coach more than my roommate? Though, I guess neither me nor roomie Ann have actually been living in our apt lately. The 100 degree heat is not my friend at night. On top of going to crossfit 6 days a week for normal classes, I've been showing up in the afternoon to either work on form or, like last night, just because thats where the cool kids were. I love it though! I love cheering on these fabulous people and watching them rock their workouts! I'm addicted. You know this. Deal with it.

You know what else I'm obsessed with? Coconut. Coconut lotion, coconut oil, coconut flour, have you tasted the coconut mocha at Starbucks?! (oh yeah, I've cheated a few times just for that delicious-ness)

Last night, dinner was pretty fantastic. What made it even better was I didn't make it! (I helped a little, but that ended in a ruined kitchen mat, a melted spatula, and a puddle of tupperware container. Don't ask) Almond flour/coconut breaded chicken with pineapple and a sweet potato on the side with a raspberry/blueberry/bacon kale salad was on the menu. The shirtless chef (yeah, he likes to show off his 6 pack) did most of the work created this yummy dish!

This is my FIRST recipe posted that did not come from the internet! (kudos Matt!)

Self-Image

After reading this article, I felt inclined to write. (If I feel like writing, I should because I can go days without inspiration, plus I really want to look back on this)

I love lifting. I love pushing myself and seeing how far I can go. I like the pain, I like the muscles. Like my last blog said "muscles aren't manly". Crossfit has don't so much for me physically and mentally. Not only is my strength accepted, its celebrated. I really don't think I've ever felt this comfortable with myself before.

I've struggled my whole life with body-image, always being taller, bigger, bulkier than my friends. Watching the Crossfit games and seeing other female crossfitters, I'm finally happy with myself. I know everyone says you need to learn to love yourself on your own, but who decided that thats how it should be? Society is the reason I felt bad in the first place! I didn't put these awful opinions in my head on my own, so I need help to get them out.

I feel optimistic about life right now. I think I figured out what I need to be doing.
-and this picture/saying/idea keeps popping up everywhere....so I'm taking that as I sign :)

Re-Focus

I believe I have fallen into a routine. A routine where I know what weights I can lift, I bust out the WOD and I congratulate myself on being awesome. BUT, then I'm disappointed because I want to lift more and I'm not and blah blah blah I'm not setting goals!!!!! Anyway, I decided to stop worrying so much about finishing before people and start increasing my weights. It's painful. (Lucky for me, I have all of next week in Aruba to relax and allow my body to heal!) What also needs to be refocused is my diet! I have stuck to paleo mostly, (damn you muffin....never again will I have the desire to consume such an awful pastry that caused upset tummy for 2 days!) Anyway, fruit and nuts...you are probably going to take a smaller role in my diet. Well, ok maybe after I get back from vacation. I want to get leaner, I'm still losing weight, but it's slowed a lot.

I cooked the other night! Real food too! Another fantastic recipe from Juli on Paleomg, salmon asparagus frittata :) Mmmm it was yummy. I would post a picture, but it was devoured in .3 seconds. I'll post a link to the recipe though! It really was easy and delicious! I also made an attempt at paleo donuts because someone was craving dunkin donuts blueberry glazed (Not me!) Note to self, any recipe with only coconut flour is going to suck all of the saliva out of your mouth and make nearly impossible to swallow. My remedy for that was to cover the donut in (paleo) chocolate ganache!

Yes, they are in the shape of a heart. I only own heart-shaped donut pans, k?

In other news, I got this awesome WOD Book! It has all kinds of workouts and places for me to track what I do.

So here's to a week of relaxing (and light workouts) followed by a major refocus!

Summer Bash Recap!

First, let me say that I wish I took a picture of all of the food we had! Chicken, kielbasa, fruit, cookies, brownies, wine, and tequila...omg. All paleo, or paleo-ish. The whole evening was fantastic! My team (team purple!) came in second with 695 points out of a possible 700. I will completely take the blame for those 5 missing points...stupid big feet, not fitting into the row machine! But thanks to the supermen I had as teammates, we still rocked it!

I like these pictures...I kinda look like a bad-ass. It was very obvious that my team was serious about this competition. We all arrived early, stretched out, and wore matching shirts. (It's part mental!)

Speaking of "part-mental", this story here is so me. Favorite quote in the article -> I also write my own mantra on my race wristband: "Never, ever give up -- and smile." It might not be the same for everyone, but smiling, for me, is crucial." Watch my face when I'm going for a max lift....I always start with a smile and happy thoughts. (Though, I usually end up with an angry face and a loud yell as I focus energy!)


Back to the competition, it was very intense, but ridiculously fun! Next month we're competing against another box! I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!!!

Get Psyched!

I really wanted to blog more, but I forget! Anyway, it has been awhile and I wanted to let you know that I am down to 165lbs. I hit 164 for a bit, but the 4th of July and a few visiting parents caused me to consume a bit more than average!

So speaking of visiting parents, I had dinner last night with my friend and his parents and ended up blabbing a lot about the Paleo diet and why I love it. I really hope I NEVER come off as pushing my beliefs onto other people. I know that what I am doing works great for me. I feel better, I look better, I play better Whith that being said, this is what works for me. I cheat and eat ice cream, I nibble some cheese, I had a freakin' brownie in a hormonal craze after baking them for a friends birthday! I would never tell someone THIS is the way you HAVE to do it to be like me. You aren't me. I am in the process of deciding whether or not I want to take on personal training, (I probably will, c'mon this is like my dream!) I couldnt imagine having an overweight/potentially sick person come to me looking for help and me telling them "Let's start with burpees and then run 5 miles. Oh and cut out all carbs, added sugars, gluten, and beans from your diet...ok lets go!" Yeah, I would be totally psyched if someone told me that...but I might be crazy :) I drank the crossfit kool-aid and I'm obsessed. (Fact: I had NO idea what drinking the kool-aid meant until like 2 weeks ago.)

Anyway, to sum up what I'm trying to say is, yes I talk about my diet and exercise choices a lot, but I will not push them on anyone else. I would LOVE to make suggestions for people though and help clear up a path to physical fitness and happiness!

More to be psyched about...TONIGHT MY CROSSFIT BOX IS HAVING OUR OWN MINI-GAMES! (if you aren't a crossfitter, this weekend is the Crossfit games...aka the sport of fitness!) I hope to post pictures and talk about it more later this week!
here's the link!
http://crossfitbeyond.com/blog/a-glimpse-of-the-summer-bash-2012/