Connie's Very Own Crossfit Blog

2009-08-16T20:47:00.000-07:00

Hola amigos! I've been away for waaaay too long. The end of school and a new job have kept me pretty damn busy the last couple of months, but no more excuse! I came across this video and had to share it with ya'll! Hope you enjoy it!

Double Trouble

2009-05-22T13:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I spent the day outdoors in beautiful Berkeley. It was a nice day with lots of sunshine and a cool breeze. Afterwards, I headed to CFO for the WOD. It was suppose to be my rest day, having worked out 3 days in a row, but the WOD looked too good to pass up and I knew I would have a hard time getting someone to do it with me on a rest day. Boy was I right! This workout was one of the hardest and it took me a whopping 45 minutes to complete it...scaled! Must work on HSPUs!!!! I used an abmat and 2-5 lb plates as a target. I practiced kipping HSPU a bunch with Audge before the workout but couldn't seem to stay upright at the end of the push up. The L-pull ups were by far the hardest part. I was able to do 2 sets of 2 but did the rest as singles. Needless to say, I'm taking the day off today and mostly likely going to Yoga--thanks to Sierra for introducing me to it:)

Yesterday's wod:

"Twins"
Two rounds, of each couplet, for time of:

750 meter Row

20 Handstand Push-ups (to target)

75 pound Thruster, 20 reps

20 L-Pull-ups

My time--> 44:46

Sleep-->8 hours

Food

8:15Am

Sausage

about 3/4 cup Braised Greens

1pm

about 4 oz Grass-fed Beef

Salad: lettuce, green beans, onions, celery, homemade pesto dressing

Raw Flaxseed crackers

about 1/2 Tbs Almond Butter

Supplements--> Fish oil, Multi, Zinc, HCL

CrossFit Munchies

2009-05-18T11:06:00.000-07:00

What a week! Last week I got a lot of solid workouts in and set 3 PRs! Since the NorCal qualifiers two weeks ago, I've been really focused on stepping it up on the training floor. Although I was really happy with my performance at the Qualifiers, I realized that I have a lot of room for improvement. That's one of the beauties of CF; there is always room to grow.

So after a week of breaking PRs and consistant training, I've spent the last two days eating everything in sight! I've always had a healthy appetite but this weekend my appetite was threw the roof. I woke up ravenous on Saturday and Sunday and found myself eating every 2 hours. I felt like a teenage boy! Actually, I kinda look like one too:) I guess I had a case of the CF munchies.

New PRs:

-->Deadlift 185# x 1 (previous 180)

--> "Grace" 10:23 rx'd (previous 11:43 @ 80#)

30 Clean and Jerks for Time, 95#

-->"Diane" 13:45: 155#/1 Abmat+2 5lb plates (previous 27:54: 126#/2 Abmats)

21-15-9, reps

Deadlifts, 155# and HSPU

4 Days left!

2009-04-28T08:49:00.000-07:00

With only four days to go until the NorCal Regional Qualifiers, I'm beginning to get really excited and terrified about the workouts. Yesterday a few of us test workout A with the women's Rx'd weight and it didn't go as well as I thought it would. Here's the workout:

Row 500 meters

30 Burpees

95 pounds Shoulders to Overhead, 10 reps

My time 8:57

I didn't kill myself on the row and I took it pretty easy on the burpees but I was surprisingly gassed when I cleaned the wieght for my first rep. My legs were fried and I could barely get the weight overhead. I attempted a second push jerk and failed. The rest were all singles. This was really frustrating because the workout is 10 reps shoulder to overhead NOT floor to overhead!!!! Anway, I am going to give it another go this afternoon and see what happens. Wish me luck!

6 Simple Ways to Improve Your Diet

2009-04-21T09:54:00.000-07:00

High quality food is at the core of any healthy diet. These foods fuel the body with the nourishment it needs to function at its best. Fortunately, you can do a lot to improve your diet simply by making better food choices. Here’s how:

1. Chose unprocessed, unrefined, REAL food. Michael Pollan says that you shouldn’t eat anything your great-great grandmother wouldn't recognize as food (In Defense of Food). This means “Go-Gurts” or “Pop-Tarts” are out of the question.

2. Buy chemical-free, Organic foods. Conventional foods are saturated with toxic chemical pesticides, and fungacides that like to linger in the body’s fatty tissue and organs.

3. Load up on fresh, fruits and vegetables. These foods contain very little calories but are packed with nutrients and fiber. Include them with every meal.

4. Don’t skip out on fat. Natural fats such as avocados, nuts, seeds, natural oils, and coconut keep your skin looking healthy and help keep hunger at bay.

5. Drink purified or filtered water. Avoid drinking from plastic water bottles, especially if they have been exposed to sunlight. Try to get approximately 1/2 your body weight in fluid ounces every day.

6. Your protein is only as good as the farm it came from. Buy animal protein that is Organic, free-range, grass-fed or wild. If you can tolerate dairy, look for Organic and raw.

I'm Baaack!

2009-04-20T12:05:00.000-07:00

With just a few weeks left until the norcal regional qualifiers, I've put my strength cycle on hold and started hitting the CrossFit wods. Strength training has been my primary focus for the past 9 weeks so this hasn't been the most enjoyable experience so far. I'm looking foward to seeing how my strength gains will translate in the metcons.

Results of last 2 CrossFit cycles:

"DT"Five rounds for time of:

12 Deadlifts

9 Hang power cleans

6 Push Jerks

My time-> 15:11 (89 #)

"Helen" Three rounds for time of:

Run 400m

21 KB Swings

12 pull-ups

My time-> 15:28 (44# KB & 20# pull-ups)

"Danny" AMRAP in 20 minutes of:

30 Box Jumps

20 Push Presses

30 Pull-ups

My time-> 2 rounds+ 20 box jums (80# push press)

Saturday- untimed wod at the track

"Angie"

100 Pull-ups

100 Push-ups

100 Sit-ups

100 Squats

My time-> 33:04 rx'd

Backsquat 3-3-3-3-3

115-125-135-140(2)-140(1)

I'm pretty wrecked today. My hands are ripped and covered in band aids and I have a huge gash on my collarbone that looks like a massive hickey. It's pretty awesome!

Favorite wod: "DT"

More on BioSig

2009-04-14T12:09:00.000-07:00

Alright so it’s been almost 4 weeks since the BioSig seminar and I've been busy testing out the insulin protocol. After I returned I was pretty optimistic and eager to try something new. I guess you can say I get bored pretty quickly and have fun experimenting on myself. The BioSig stuff isn't way out there, but it does require a fair bit of discipline and patience.

To be honest, adjusting to the new diet & exercise regimen hasn’t been too difficult. The hardest part is making time to cook. In the last month I've switched from a pretty zoney 10 blocks to a high protein diet (20 blocks protein) with loads of low glycemic vegetables and fat. As Poliquin would say, carbs are not my friend, so I am keeping my consumption of sugary/starchy carbs pretty low. At first I found myself craving sweets and experiencing some minor carb withdrawals but after the first week I felt pretty damn good. Those of us, who don’t typically do well on lots of sugars, tend to crave sweets and have a hard time living without them. Cutting out carbs cold turkey can be really hard so I suggest weaning yourself off them gradually. Once I got off of them completely I found that my cravings disappeared and I felt much more energetic and clear headed. Eating this way will help to teach my body to become more sensitive or receptive, to carbohydrates and insulin.

In addition to the diet stuff, I’ve begun supplementing with lots of fish oil (1 tablespoon/day), fenugreek, taurine, HCL and other vitamins. While I haven’t really noticed any major changes in my body composition, my sleep has improved tremendously. I’ve also found that my energy and mood is much more balanced throughout the day.

Today’s meals:
9am
“Breakfast burrito” - 4 eggs, spinach, and broccoli rolled up in a Nori sheet (see photo).
1 tablespoon raw coconut butter
12pm
3oz Turkey breast
¼ Avocado
1 cup sautéed eggplant and zucchini

Hours slept last nite: 9

Update

2009-03-23T12:54:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in the previous post, I had the privilege of attending the Biosignature Modulation seminar lead by Charles Poliquin. Poliquin uses Biosignature Modulation to determine and address hormonal imbalance through diet, exercise and natural supplements. At the seminar we learned the principles of Biosig and most importantly, we were trained on how to use calipers to measure skin folds. According to Poliquin, the skin folds can reveal a lot about an individuals hormonal make up. It's important to note that while this may seem to be all about body fat percentage, it is more focused on where you store fat and why.

It was interesting to hear him talk about the dietary protocols that he's experimented with over the years and has implemented with great success. Charles has extensive knowledge of nearly every vitamin, mineral and botanical out there and how to use them to treat hormonal imbalances. This was refreshing advice as I am a huge advocate of using food to combat weight loss. Because we are each biologically unique, it is important to get to know your body to understand which nutrients will be useful for you. In addition, Charles reinforced much of what we already know about the components [sleep, whole food diet, low stress, etc.] of a healthy lifestyle. He came across as part strength coach, part scientist and part French-Canadian hippie.

I came away with a new-found appreciation of just how the foods we eat enormously affects our day to day as well as long term health. For the next few months I'll be experimenting on myself with the Biosignature protocol that I received. Part of my own protocol is to eat more protein- a lot more protein (see photo above) and less carbohydrates as I don't do well on a high carb diet. I am experimenting with the time and duration of my workouts. The programming is pretty much the same except I'll be doing less metcons.

To read more on Biosignature Modulation check out Charles Poliquin's website and this brief article in Oxygen Magazine.

Food Today: My goal is 140g protein today.

6AM

2oz Chicken with homemade Pesto

10AM (PWO)

4oz Chicken with homemade Pesto

.75 cup Cabbage, onions, carrots

11:00AM

2 Tbsp Coconut Butter, raw

12:30PM

1.5 cup Goat's milk yogurt, plain

1 Tbsp Almond butter

Workout Today:

Backsquat

120 pounds 5-5-5-5 (120 sec rest between each set)

Deadlift

159 pounds 5-5-5-5 (120 sec rest between each set)

Sleep

7.25hrs

Even though I didn't get nearly enough sleep, I slept incredibly well last nite:)

Biosignature Seminar here I come!

2009-03-10T13:06:00.000-07:00

Today I am headed to Vancouver for the Biosignature Level 1 seminar. I have been really looking forward to attending this and gaining some wonderful insight on hormones. Many people have hormonal issues that make their fat loss efforts difficult: poor insulin sensitivity, a sluggish thyroid, estrogen imbalances, etc. I hope to utilize this valuable information to help future clients attain optimal fitness.

Charles Poliquin is a strength coach who does a lot of research on where people store fat on their bodies and why. Most of this research is based on his work with athletes. Biosignature Modulation is a system he developed over the course of 20 plus years of taking clients' skin fold measurements and comparing the results to what their bloodwork revealed about their hormonal status. According to Poliquin, with Biosignature Modulation one simply needs to measure just twelve specific skin folds to get a clear picture of what's going on hormonally inside and address these imbalances through dietary recommendations, exercise and supplements.

I'll be posting more on this when I return...

A word on weight loss

2009-02-12T16:20:00.000-08:00

This is a valuable article that lays out some helpful tips for those looking to lose weight naturally. It's written by Dr. Marcus Laux who is a licensed naturopathic physician is the co-author of Natural Woman, Natural Menopause, and Top Ten Natural Therapies.

Step 1: Think Yourself Thin

* A healthy attitude and mindset are the first step in choosing to lose weight. Begin by discovering your reasons for eating. Weight gain has less to do with what you eat, and more to do with why you eat.

* Practice personal insight and honesty. Begin your day with 10–15 minutes of simple meditation or prayer in a quiet place. Focus on your inner feelings and desires. Let the things that are bothering you come to the surface and let them go. Find out if you're an Emotional Eater. Meditate or pray before your meal—it should rejuvenate you.

* Meditation allows you to connect calmly with your deepest thoughts and feelings. Then you should be able to eat with more conscious attention and appreciation and reduce your chances of overeating. Write down ideas, feelings, or revelations for further reflection.

Step 2: Eat Natural Fat-Burning Foods

* Learn to make proper food choices. You were not meant to be overweight. Even if you have a genetic tendency toward weight gain, you can and will be naturally trim if you give nature the opportunity to burn off the fat.

* Certain foods increase metabolism while others bog it down. Forget trend diets that focus what you need to cut out—junk foods, refined foods, and fried foods—and focus on what you need to add to your diet.

* Try a drink before you snack or sit down for a meal. Sometimes what feels like hunger pains are actually thirst pains. Water is your best bet, then fresh juices (the real stuff), iced tea, or herbal teas. * Enjoy red meat in moderation. It's high in L-carnitine—an amino acid that mimics the fat-burning effects of exercise.

* Eat fresh, whole, organic, nutrient-rich—preferably local and seasonal—foods such as vegetables, fruits, legumes, grains, nuts, seeds, and fish. Sparingly eat carrots, potatoes, corn, and peas, because they have a high glycemic index rating.

* Eat as much as you want of cabbage, celery, mushrooms, zucchini, green onion, hot peppers, banana peppers, endive, radish, jicama, and all dark, leafy greens. Keep a bowl of your favorite washed, raw veggies in the refrigerator all the time. If you want to use a dipping sauce make it from yogurt or low-fat cream cheese, dill, and fresh squeezed lemon juice.

* Snack on vegetables and legumes that provide fiber, complex carbohydrates, and minerals needed for sustained energy and regularity—so you feel full longer. Fruits are good for you, but fruit sugar burns quickly and your 10 a.m. apple won't last you until lunchtime.

* Aim for 100–150 calorie snacks that consist of some protein, some fat, and some carbs—so enjoy a couple of cubes of good cheese with your veggie snacks, or a handful of almonds, macadamia nuts, or crackers with peanut or almond butter.

* Munch on the right kind of nuts to boost essential fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and fiber. A recent study found that individuals who ate 73 grams, or two small handfuls of almonds daily, did not show any signs of weight gain. Nuts are filling and satisfying.

* Replace bad fats with good fats. Decrease polyunsaturated fats and trans fatty acids like margarine, shortening, and partially hydrogenated oils. Use olive oil, coconut oil, or nut oils like macadamia or walnut.

* Use spices such as ginger, marjoram, rosemary, fennel, cardamom, dill, thyme, tarragon, coriander, and basil, because they're tongue-pleasers that will give your meal a flavor boost without adding calories or fat.

* Take a high-quality multivitamin and mineral that includes a complete B-complex. This will enhance your body's ability to digest, absorb, and eliminate foods.

Step 3: Nature's Appetite Suppressants and Fat Burners: Select natural and safe appetite suppressants and fat burners:

* Consider taking 5-HTP to boost serotonin levels. Serotonin deficiency is associated with feelings of starvation and hunger. Taking 5-HTP at low doses effectively suppresses cravings for refined carbohydrates. Always take it with protein (12–25 mg 30 minutes before each meal, and no more than 75 mg per day).

* Use conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) to burn fat and turn it into energy. Without CLA, your body will store fat. CLA can be found in whole milk, butter, whole cheeses, beef, and lamb. Supplemental CLA increases metabolic rate, decreases appetite, and enhances fat oxidation. It has been shown to reduce body fat by as much as 20 percent in 12 weeks without any changes in diet or lifestyle. Because CLA results in more muscle tissue, which weighs more than fat—watch your body fat percentage instead of your scale.

* Drink 2–3 cups of green tea. It contains polyphenol catechins that inhibit the breakdown of norepinephrine, and results in an increased metabolic rate and better fat oxidation so that existing fat cells are destroyed faster.

* Cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, and other spices can curb your appetite by supporting healthy blood sugar levels. They help improve circulation and increase metabolic output. I recommend drinking teas made with them throughout the day. You can find them at most health food stores.

Step 4: Go Play!Take a break and get a little exercise.At minimum, exercise for 30 minutes every other morning. Then take a "recess break" each afternoon (a light stroll, a good stretch, etc.). I suggest:

* Aerobic exercise that gets your heart rate up for 15 to 40 minutes to boost your calorie-burning. It doesn't have to be overly strenuous.

* Weight training to build muscle and improve your resting metabolism so you'll burn more calories all day long. Ounce for ounce, muscle requires more energy so it burns more calories than fat.

The Last Word:

Hide your scale. Its information is not what's important. Instead focus on how you look, feel, and do what you want to do.

Be patient. Lasting weight loss takes some time. Make the time to incorporate these recommendations into your life, and you'll get satisfying and permanent results.

This article was adapted from a Special Report published in Naturally Well Today. To order the full report, please call 800.264.4871. If you'd like to know more about natural solutions for other conditions, subscribe to Naturally Well Today, my monthly newsletter on healing with nature's medicine.

La Dolce Vita

2009-02-04T11:25:00.000-08:00

I recently returned from yet another trip to Mexico...I know it must seem as though I live some luxoruos life that allows me to travel to Mexico twice in one month, but that is far from true. This time I went to attend my cousin's wedding. It was truly a family affair and I met relatives that I didn't even know existed! My parents, sisters and I stayed in my parent's future retirement home in a tiny community in southern Zacatecas. The colonial town is tucked away in the mountains where it remains as one of Mexico's best kept secrets. Driving through the town along the cobblestone streets you feel as though you've traveled back in time. Wherever we turned we were greeted with warm smiles and a generous hand offering up whatever little food/drink they had. As the priest said to the congregation, "en Mezquital hay una mina de Cristianos" (here resides a mine of Christians).

As a foodie, I was particularly impressed by the way in which the community is so tied to the land. With no supermarket or restuarant for miles, there is really no other way of life. Orange, banana and avocado trees litter the streets in Mezquital and even the large cactus plant bears a sweet and delicious fruit. The women rise early to milk thier cows and prepare the cheeses that the town is known for. The day before my cousin's wedding we stopped by her house to find it full of men, women and children plucking chicken feathers, grinding corn and roasting chiles in preparation of the feast. Everyone and I mean EVERYONE, contributes with whatever means possible. What an amazing site to see...I'm really looking forward to my next visit.

Back into the swing of things

2009-01-09T08:33:00.001-08:00

I just returned from a wonderful mini-vacation. My love and I spent the last week of December hanging out in Arzona & Mexico where we ushered in the New Year. No, I did not work out, but I slept well and eat my fair share of quesadillas...mmm! Mostly, I just enjoyed spending time with Mike. It was quite lovely. Now that I'm back I feel refreshed and ready to take on some serious training. Although I want to continue lifting, I've decided I want to incorporate 1-2 more days of CF into my training. Truthfully, I miss it. I will try to split my workout in two: lift in the AM and CF in the evening. I hope that the additional CF workouts won't interfere too much with my lifting.

First week back:
Monday
OFF
Tuesday
Backsquat: worked up to a heavy set of 5 for 2 sets
CF WOD 4 Rounds:
400M run 15 HSPU (to a target)
2 Rope Climbs
My Time = 30:33
Wednesday
Bench Press (I am working on keeping my butt on the bench)
5min, 5min, 3min, 3min, 1min, 1min
max reps Clean & Jerk #65
max reps Double Unders
Thursday
Backsquat: heavy set of 5x3 followed by 2 sets of max reps at #75
Deadlift: worked up to heavy set of 3
CF wod:
Ten rounds for time of:
3 Weighted Pull-ups (started w/ #15 ended w/ #0)
5 Strict Pull-ups
7 Kipping Pull-ups
My time= 60:17 all C2b
Friday
OFF

Check out this week's podcast of Your Own Health and Fitness on KPFA at yourownhealthandfitness.org or on the KPFA archives. I am a HUGE fan of Layna Burman who is the producer and host of the show. Layna Burman is a health educator and an integrated health specialist and incredibly knowledgable on the subject of holistic health. She's totally rad and I love her! This program is aired every Tuesday at 1pm and is an excellent (and free) resource for all to enjoy. Tuesday's program discussed the role of exercise in disease prevention.

Day 5

2009-01-06T12:30:00.000-08:00

Yesterday marked my 5th day of living sugar-free! It has been a lot harder than I thought. I don't eat junk food by any means but in the past few months I've noticed that I've gotten very loose with my sugar consumption . I've gone from having 1 cheat day a week to eating sugar almost every other day. I've always had a HUGE sweet tooth so giving it up for a month is going to be mighty hard. I've been reaching for nuts or fruit to curb my sweet cravings and this seems to be doing the trick. Wish me luck!

TODAY'S FOOD:

7:30AM

3oz Chicken w/ homemade peanut sauce

braised Kale, Mushrooms, and Onions

1 Tangerine

12:10PM

3oz Beef w/ roasted onions

1 Apple

Lotsa Almonds

SLEEP LAST NITE: 8.5hrs

EXERCISE: Tonite @ CFO

A busy girl's shake

2008-12-22T10:13:00.000-08:00

I am completely committed to a whole foods diet - no doubt about that. Fresh produce, animal protein and healthy fats are the basis of my diet but lately I'm discovering that even I can't keep this up ALL the time. Eating this way takes time and although it is totally worth it, sometimes I just can't do it. My usual routine is to prepare a whole ton of food on Sunday or Monday nite for the next few days. This is a great system that saves time (and $$) during the week. Also, preparing your meals ahead of time will guarantee that you stick to your diet. When I simply don't have time to prepare food in advance, I resort to a protein shake. It's easy in a pinch and tastes damn good too. The downside is that it doesn't satisfy your hunger like real food and I am usually starving 2 hours after drinking. That being said, I wouldn't recommend this for everyone.

Busy Girl's Shake:

Paleomeal whey powder (excellent source- from grass-fed cows)

1/2 cup Coconut Milk, canned

juice from 1 Lemon

1 scoop Green powder (Jarrow brand)

2 tbs Brewer's yeast (excellent source of b vitamins, minerals and amino acids)

organic Cherries, frozen

2 tbs ground Flaxseed (good source of fiber and Omega 3 fatty acids)

1/2 cup Goat's milk Kefir (good probiotic)

Cinnamon

*Throw this all in a blender until smooth.

I don't bother counting blocks on this one, but if I had to guess:

4-5 Protein blocks, 7-10 Fat blocks, about 2 Carb blocks

Bull's Eye

2008-12-05T11:58:00.000-08:00

I finally hit my target weight on bench press: my bodywieght. After months and months with no hope of ever getting over the 100 pound hump, I just about cried yesterday when I got 113 x2. Last week I got 100 x5x3 fairly easily so I thought I would try my bodyweight. What the heck, why not, right? For some reason, I had imagined that the weight would feel like a gajillion pounds as soon as I got it off the rack but it was surprisingly "light". It felt so good, I went for another and got it!

I'm absolutely thrilled to have a bodywieght bench press and it's no coincidence that I got it during my strength training cycle. My hard work is finally paying off. So, even though I may have a pathetic Helen time, at least I can bench press #113! Whoo-hoo!

Yesterday's Workout:

"Lynne"

Max Reps Bodywieght Bench Press

Max Reps Pull-ups

5 Rounds

2/10, 1/10, 0/10, 0/10, 1/10

Total Score: 54

The third and fourth rounds were brutal. My bar path was a little off and I couldn't manage to correct it while pushing the weight off my chest. I'm okay with that. I'll definitely try again next week.

Food Today:

6AM

Shake (whey, brewer's yeast, flaxseed, hempseed mik, coconut milk, frozen berries)

10AM

1oz Turkey

2 slices of Jicama, raw

Herbal tea

12PM

2.5oz Turkey

2 cups Green Beans, cooked

3 Almonds

Sleep: 7.10 hours

On a side note: I have to say that I’m super excited to be writing a blog post today. Finally! Work and school have been keeping me busy these days, leaving me very little time for anything else. I find that the free time I do get here and there is spent at the gym playing catch up on my workouts. I’m not used to spreading myself thin and I must say I really suck at it. I’d like to say I can work 2 jobs, do homework, adequately feed myself, train hard, and get 10 hours of sleep every nite but I’d be lying. Needless to say, I'm working on organizing my life and “getting my mind right” as Angela says.

2008-11-18T08:41:00.000-08:00

Rippetoe is right. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. I love CF but I've recently reached a point in my training where I think I could really benefit from a break. Up until now, I’ve supplemented CF with powerlifts every 3rd day or so, but my linear progression on the lifts soon came to screeching halt on this program. Obviously, my desire to be both good at metcons and strong was getting me nowhere. I still have trouble doing a good deal of the CF wods with the prescribed women’s weight so, I decided that if I’m ever going to do “Linda” rx’d I had to commit to heavy lifting and quit messing around!

This week I’m entering my 5th week of strength training. I’ve been doing a combination of power lifts (e.g. backsquat, press, bench press), Olympic lifts, and some accessory exercise (weighted dips/pull-up). I’m following the SS novice program pretty loosely and have been strict about taking a rest day every other day. According to Ripp, you don’t get stronger from lifting heavy weights; you get stronger recovering from lifting heavy weights.

Workout Log 11.17.08

Yesterday I learned just how unconditioned I am. My Helen time was 1:26 slower than my last time. I felt totally winded during the runs and I’m pretty sure I was gasping for air as I reached the gym on the final run. As I mentioned above, this is to be expected after a month of only lifting. On the bright side, I did all of the KB swings unbroken for the first time ever.

Backsquat 5x5 @ #118- Mike advised me to widen my stance a bit, which helped in correcting my depth and torso angle.

Bench Press 5x5 @ #98 (wow, I’m almost benching as much as I squat, interesting…)

Here is a great video on Female Olymic Lifters from the Strength Mill forum:
http://strengthmill.net/forum/showthread.php?t=88&highlight=female

Sleep

Sunday- 8hrs

Monday- 9hrs

Catching some Zs

2008-11-12T13:03:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned in the last post, sleep has taken a high priority in my life. I just picked up TS Wiley's book LIGHTS OUT, Sleep, Sugar, and Survival, a well-researched look into the long-term health effects that sleep deprivation has on today's society. Wiley does an excellent job of arguing how lack of sleep can be at the root of many modern diseases. In the short time that I've been reading it, I have learned to appreciate the important role sleep has in my health. While we all know that we feel better after a good nights sleep, most of us short ourselves on our daily rest. Now that I’m back at school I really have to learn to manage my time so that I don’t have to sacrifice sleep.

And what a more appropriate time to begin my hibernation than fall? Unless you’ve been living entirely indoors for the past 30 days, you may be fully aware that summer is officially over. This means the hours of sunlight are becoming less and less. Naturally, the body makes its own adjustments to conform to its surrounding environment that is rarely constant. This typically translates into early bedtimes and sleeping in late -the body's attempt to conserve energy for the ensuing winter months. I think it's important to not resist this natural inclination to want to sleep more; it's the body's way of communicating that it NEEDS MORE SLEEP! I've definitely been guilty of guzzling down loads of coffee to ward off the yawns but that simply just won’t do any more, especially since I've sworn off coffee. The point is that adequate sleep is an important component to a healthy lifestyle and I plan on getting in on some!

Sleep Log
Monday 9.25
Tuesday 9
Wednesday 7.25

Yesterday’s Workout
Backsquat 5x5 #118
Benchpress 5x5 #96

Finisher: FGB 224 total score

(this was 5 reps short of my PR, but not bad considering I really haven’t been doing any metcons).

May you have a restful night of sleep!

Friday...Ahh..

2008-11-07T15:53:00.000-08:00

I couldn't be happier for the weekend! This week felt exceptionally looong. The combination of school+fieldwork+an election was enough to throw off my sleep and training this week. In anticipation of my hectic schedule, I got in a pretty decent workout on Sunday though. Thank God for that.

Sunday

Backsquat 5x3 #114 (back'd off 10%)

Bench Press 5x3 #94

Pull-up Ladder= 10 rounds+5pull-ups C2B

2 Rounds of:

10 Box Jumps 26" box

10 Kb Swings 44#

4:41

Sprint 8 @Piedmont Track

Monday off.

Tuesday would have been my next training day if I hadn't of been glued to the Television.

Wednesday

Squat Cleans 3x5 #88

Wieghted Dips 5x2 #11 (would have done another set but I was rushed)

WOD: How many rounds in 20 mins of?

10 Thrusters #45

1o Pull-ups C2B

=10 rounds

Thursday off.

Friday

My quads were fried after the thruster workout on Wednesday so I did backsquats instead of front. Unfortunately, it still killed my legs.

Backsquat 5x5 #116

Shoulder Press 5x3 #68 (failed) = 4/3/4

Weighted Dips 5x3 #13 (failed) = 4/4/4

WOD: Helen-ish 3 Rounds of:

50 Double Unders

21 Kb Swings #44

12 Pull-ups C2B

Meals have been pretty good this week. I didn't have much time to plan but managed to get by on leftovers from the weekend. I've been maintaining 10-11 blocks of protein with lots of extra fat. Most carbs have been low GI and I've been pretty careful about not overdoing it, oh except for the vino on Tuesday and Thursday...and the homemade carrot cake on Wednesday. Okay, maybe I'm idealizing a bit. Nevertheless, I am really looking forward to the weekend and spending some quality time at home!

Sleep was a bit scarce this week. Late nights at school followed by early mornings at CrossFit put me in a sleep deficit. I averaged about 7.25 hours a nite. This is totally unacceptable, especially if I want to see any gains from my hard training. But, this was a rough week and sometimes it just works out that way. I'm hopeful that next week I'll be able to clock in a solid 9-10 hours/nite.

Kicking the Habit

2008-10-30T12:05:00.000-07:00

As I sit down to sip my hot, organic lemon-ginger tulsi tea (take that Starbucks), I am reminded that today marks my 30th day without coffee and chewing gum. When I first decided to give my two vices the boot I had some serious doubt that I could survive without either one-especially gum. After the initial withdrawal symptoms from the coffee, the transition wasn’t so bad. Don’t get me wrong, there are still times when I am captured by the smell of a fresh pot of coffee and find myself staring longingly into the pot. And I do miss my kiwi-mandarin Trident gum, especially when I’m craving something sweet after lunch. Now that I’ve successfully completed 1 month free of coffee and gum, I feel like I can do anything!

When I started the Holistic Nutrition Education program at Bauman College, I quickly became aware of the potentially harmful effects of all sorts of junk that we put in our bodies. In my case, it was the sorbitol and other synthetic chemicals in chewing gum coupled with the absorbent amounts of caffeine, in the form of coffee, that were the main culprits.

The Good News: For the first time in a LONG time, I did not have menstrual cramps this month. This makes it all worth it! I remember the pain last month all too well and am thrilled to not have to re-live it. And, lucky for my friends and family, not chewing gum all the time has resulted in no more burps! OK, maybe a few tiny ones here and there.

Today's Meals:

Breakfast 8:45AM

3 Eggs scrambled w/ Kale and Tomato

1 piece of Bacon

5 Macadamia Nuts

3.5 protein/1 carb/ 8 fat (?)

Lunch 11:45PM

3oz Turkey breast

Fresh Tomato w/ Hummus

1 Peach

Peanut Butter

3 protein/1.5 carb/7 fat

Gettin' on track

2008-10-27T12:24:00.000-07:00

On Friday nite I had myself a cheat meal. I had just completed the first week of my strength cycle and was feeling the need to splurge. Besides, I really couldn't resist my sister's homemade chocolate chip cookies. They were tasty, but I regreted it the next morning when I woke up with a huge tummy ache. It's been awhile since I've had a reaction that bad- my body's way of telling me that it doesn't want sugar and flour, regardless of how good it tastes. Needless to say, I spent the first part of my morning in agony. A few trips to the toilet and I was feeling well enough to hit the track for some sprints...

For the next few weeks, I will be focusing on strength as I mentioned in the previous post. Here's what it will look like:

Monday & Friday
5x5 Backsquat or Front Squat (alternating)
5x5 Press or Bench (alternating)
5x5 Weighted Pull-up or Weighted Ring Dips (alternating)
Finisher: 5-10min of a heavy metcon like Fat Cindy, or 1 round of FGB @ men's weight.

Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday off

Wednesday
5x3 Squat Cleans or Squat Snatch (alternating)
OR, Deadlifts
Finisher: 10min metcon at normal weight focusing on intensity.

Saturday
8 Sprints: 30 seconds on followed by 90 seconds of rest.

Last week went pretty well. However, I must admit that refraining from the long(er) CF wods is a lot harder than I thought it would be. But, I know that in order to get adequate recovery between lifting days I have to do this.

Diet: No major changes here, except that I am eating unlimited fat blocks and keeping carbs low except for post workout meals. Paleo foods 10 blocks with lots of extra fat for now, but I may bump up myself up to 11 blocks if I can't make my weight increases.

Back to Basics

2008-10-21T08:21:00.000-07:00

About a year ago I attended the Mark Rippetoes's Basic Barbell Certification seminar. Ripp along with Lon Kilgore, lead a 2 day seminar where they taught the power lifts (backsquat, deadlift, bench press, shoulder press, power clean) and discussed the value of incorporating these lifts into one's exercise program to further improve overall strength. Rippetoe made it very clear that the squat in particular is especially critical in developing strength, stating that, "few things are graven in stone, except that you have to squat or you're a pussy."

Moving along, I have decided to really focus on my lifts again. After a period of linear progression, I've finally come to a standstill on my lifts. Rather than whine about it, and deliberately go out of my way to avoid backsquats, I am going after it with everything I got! There is simply too much to lose to just give up that easily. I discovered this excerpt on women and training on the strengthmill blog:

"It has been my experience that women progress exactly as men do, but at a slower rate. Adaptation is a trans-sex phenomenon, and we all progress in a linear fashion, testosterone or not. But in realizing the different rate of adaptation said hormones allow, you also realize that the small plates cannot wait even one more workout. These little jewels allow your progress to behave the same as a man's in terms of its linearity, instead of being stuck for 2-3 workouts as a matter of course. You can use 2" flat washers glued together to make up the plates you need inexpensively, so do this tomorrow." Here is another article he wrote on this topic.

Monday

Backsquat 5X5 @ 124 pounds 5-5-3 - I am going to attempt this same weight today.

Shoulder Press 5X5 @ 69 pounds 4-3-4

Today's Food

7:30AM

3 eggs scrambled w/ carrot, yellow squash and spinach

6 Almonds

1/2 Tbs Peanut Butter

= 3P/1.5C/4F

11:30AM

Salmon, canned

Raw sea Sauerkraut

Cabbage Salad w/ walnut oil & vinegar

1/4 cup Grapes

9 Almonds

= 3P/2C/6F

3 Days On!

2008-10-18T20:02:00.000-07:00

I just finished the final day of my 3 day workout cycle and boy am I pooped!

Thursday
4 Rounds of:
10 Power Snatches #48
15 Pull-ups
20 Thrusters #48
25:52

Friday
AM workout
"Cindy"
6 rounds+9 push-ups
w/ 20lb weight vest

PM workout
Deadlifts
worked up to a set of 5 at 160

Saturday
Angela's Snatch Clinic
Lots of good healthy practice.

"Filthy 50"
35:39

I felt really good to get back into the gym after being sick for bit. I think it actually may have helped my recovery. Well, I am off to have a humongous cheat meal! I'll be taking a rest day tomorrow as I will be in Milpitas for the BGDC show down. Lets wish our fellow CFOers well!

Lunchtime at the office...

2008-10-15T12:19:00.000-07:00

My lunch provoked much curiosity around the office today. It doesn't look very appealing because of the color and consistency but it sure is tasty! I got the recipe from one of my instructors at Bauman College but she may have taken it from another source. She calls it Beet & Carrot Slaw and she made it on our first day of class. I don't normally eat raw vegetables, not because I don't like them but simply because I haven't discovered many ways to prepare them. It's a lame excuse and in the future will make more of an effort to find more recipes. After all, I do believe we should enjoy foods in their most natural form. I happened to have A TON of carrots and beets from my dad's garden so I made a bunch of it last nite. And I mean a bunch!

2-3 Beets, peeled

2-3 Carrots, sliced

1-2 Apples, cored & sliced

Pecans

Lemon Juice

Unsweetened grated Coconut

Sea Salt

Olive oil

Its very simple to make, but it can be a bit time consuming (pls don't let that stop you). In a food processor, coarsely chop the first 4 ingredients in the order in which they are listed. Place them into a large bowl as you chop. Add in the lemon juice, coconut, sea salt and oil and mix well. As a nice final touch you can grate some lemon peel on top. Its best served cold.

Not just the Monday blues

2008-10-13T12:39:00.000-07:00

Ugh, I hate to admit it, but I have definately caught the nasty bug that's going around. My week of clean eating and lots of sleep couldn't ward off this one. I felt it coming on all last week and this Saturday I woke up to a stuffy nose, sore throat and lots of sneezing (I sound like a Nyquil commericial). It took it easy this weekend, just planted myself on the couch and cuddled to a book all day on Saturday. Then at 4:45pm I thought it would be a good idea to get my body moving a bit...

800m Run

21 Shoulder Press #65

800m Run

21 Push-press #65

800 Run

21 Push Jerks #65

Time 20:59

The run was awful as a result of the congestion but my shoulder press felt pretty strong. Surprisingly I finished 2 minutes faster than the previous time I did this.

Sunday I took the day off from CF and spent the day in Ukiah with my family. We celebrated my nephew's 9th birthday! He's in pictured above blowing out his candles, unfortunetly you can't see his face because he's currently growing his hair out. Its THE new look, in case you didn't know. I was feeling good after resisting the Pete's coffee and so I treated myself to a piece of birthday cake. It was yummy...I even chased it with some protein to curb the effect of the sugar. It was so nice to spend some time with my family, I wish we could have stayed longer. We spent the rest of the day rummaging in my dad's garden, gathering up the last bit of Summer's gifts. I'll be posting some recipes soon...

Attn: Nutrition Heads

2008-10-07T12:30:00.000-07:00

Nutrition Data is a useful site for those of you who'd like to, as their slogan says, know what you eat! You simply type in the name of the food and within seconds it spits out all of the nutritional information for that particular food. Oddly, I discovered this website last nite while looking for the nutritional profile of Spaghetti Squash. Unfortunately, this wasn't one of the vegetables featured in any of my Zone books, but I'm not surprised.

Today's Meals:

8:00AM (19 min)

3 Eggs

1 cup Cauliflower, steamed

1 cup Strawberries

1 Nectarine

1 Tbs. Peanut Butter

Green Tea

= 3P/2.25C/5F

12:15PM (9 min)

3 oz Turkey, sliced deli-meat

1 Tangerine

1 cup Spaghetti Squash, baked (salt, pepper & olive oil)

1/2 cup Strawberries

1/2 Tbs. Kalamata Olive Spread

= 3P/2.5C/4F

Status Update: Today marks the end of my 1st week without caffeine, sugar, gluten or dairy:)

Beyond Food Blocks

2008-10-05T08:02:00.000-07:00

My first homework assignment for school was to keep a Food Journal for 7 days recording not only foods & beverages, but energy level, mood, location, duration and with whom you were dinning. As someone who regularly keeps a food journal, I wasn't sure what, if anything, I could gain from this assignment. Yet, in just a few days of journaling, I learned things about myself that were completely under my radar.

Upon examining the content of my diet, a few things really stood out to me. First, I noted a distinct relationship between the location of my meals and my energy level and attitude during and after that meal. For example, a good portion of my meals were consumed in my car while I was rushing to get somewhere. These meals left me unsatisfied and a bit stressed out as I attempted to drive while eating. Conversely, the meals that I made at home and enjoyed in the company of my loved ones were much more pleasurable. These meals had a positive and immediate effect on my energy level and mood.

As the week progressed, I noticed that I consume a lot more coffee than I thought I did.
This prompted me to try to reduce my consumption of coffee. I've always been a bit of a coffee aficionado, and didn't see my love of coffee as an addiction to caffeine until I removed it from my diet. In the beginning, I simply cut my daily intake from four cups to one. Then when I felt ready, I replaced my cup of joe with black tea and finally switched to green. It was particularly challenging at work because it gets brewed throughout the day and the aroma fills the office inviting us all to take it in. I found that drinking tea helped a lot, and now my cravings are almost entirely gone. My addiction to coffee really became obvious when the coffee was replaced with the intense headaches that are commonly linked with caffeine withdrawals. The headaches persisted for two days, but were worth kicking the habit.

The past 7 days were really insightful mostly because of the detailed structure of the Bauman Food Journal. It encompasses far more than just meal content providing a holistic view of the daily care for ones body. For me, it was recording the location and people with whom I was eating that helped me see how these seemingly minor details can have a significant impact on my overall well being.

Weekend Recap

2008-09-29T20:03:00.000-07:00

I have totally been neglecting my blog and apologize for my recent inactivity. Over the last few days, I’ve written about 27 incomplete posts so here’s a quick recap of my weekend training and recovery meals.

Saturday: Fight Gone Bad Fundraiser at CFO

Total score= 229 (pr)

I wasn't feeling so hot before the workout so I decided that I would just "get through the workout". Interestingly, my no-pressure attitude allowed me to stay relaxed and clear headed during this whirlwind wod. Immediately following this workout, I sat down to study and could hardly keep my eyes open. I figured that a workout would do just the trick to wake me up!

4 Rounds for time:

Run 400M

50 Squats

=13:18 (a minute slower than my last time)

Post Workout meal (35min):

BBQ Ribs (E&J's)

1 Sweet Potato

Cabbage Salad

Corn bread

= 3P/6C/2F (fatty protein source, no added fat)

Sunday

Push Jerks 5-5-5-5-5

65-75-85-95(2 press out)-90

Post Workout Meal (45min):

Egg Frittata w/ artichokes and tomatoes

Sausage

Fruit Salad

Coffee w/ cream

= 3P/2C/6F

Because heavy lifting is not particularly glycogen depleting, there is no need to carb up for this post workout meal.

Nicole: C2B

2008-09-24T12:56:00.000-07:00

(my hermana from another motha)

This morning's workout at CFO at 6am:

"Nicole"

Complete as many rounds in 20 minutes as you can of:

Run 400 meters

Max rep Pull-ups

Here's how it went down:

11/10/8/7/8/9/9 = 62

Last time I did this was March 16th and I got a total score of 60.

Granted I did get 13 pull-ups in the first round, but none of them were chest to bar.

Hooray, my chest to bar pull-ups a finally coming around!

Today's Meals:

7:45 AM (**post workout meal)

3 Eggs scrambled w/ mushrooms, thyme and marinara sauce.

1 small Sweet Potato

=3 Protein/4 Carb/0 Fat

10:00 AM

Coffee w/ Half & Half

12:10 PM

4.5oz Salmon, canned

2 Tbs Guacamole

1 cup sauteed Kale, Onions, Brussels sprouts

7 Macadamia Nuts

=3 Protein/1 Carb/8 Fat

Belching, gum-chewing and other sexy habits.

2008-09-23T08:25:00.000-07:00

While playing a silly game called "The Book of Questions" my sisters kindly pointed out that I burp too loud and too often. How dare they, right? I mean everybody burps, even babies, it is a natural bodily function. Okay, maybe it's not the most pleasant sound, but what can a girl do? According to our friends at wiki, all I need to do is slow my roll! Sounds simple enough, but its rather challenging for someone who really enjoys to eat!

Belching is typically caused by eating or drinking too fast, and thereby swallowing (aerophagia) and subsequently expelling air, in which the expelled gas is a mixture of nitrogen and oxygen.

To make matters worse, I am a habitual gum chewer, putting away about 3/4 of a pack of Trident gum a day! The excess air swallowed from chewing gum coupled with my rapid eating habits gives way to a whole lot of belching....look out! It no wonder I look almost 5 months pregnant, my belly is full of air! That's it I am cutting back on my gum consumption pronto!

And if you think I'm bad check this guy out:

The sound of burping is caused by the vibration of the upper esophageal sphincter[4] as the gas passes through it. The current Guinness world record for the loudest burp is 118.1 dB, set by Paul Hunn from London, England in 2000.[5] (This would be noticeably louder than a chainsaw at a distance of 1 meter.)

Today:

7:45 A.M. (21 minutes)

1oz Lite Cheese

Salmon

1/2 Avocado

1.5 cup cooked Eggplant

.5 Tbs. Peanut Butter

= 3 protein/1 carbs/4 fat

10:00 A.M.

1 cup Coffee w/ Cream

11:15 A.M.

1 piece of Gum

12:10 P.M. (16 minutes)

Salmon

1/2 Avocado

.5 cup cooked Eggplant

1 Peach

.5 Tbs Peanut Butter

=3 protein/1.5 carb/4 fat

The Contents of My Belly

2008-09-19T11:52:00.000-07:00

Monday
9:00 AM
2.5oz Roast Beef
1 small Apple
Coffee w/ heavy whipping cream
= 2.5 Protein blocks/ 1 Carb block/ 5 Fat blocks

1:00 PM
2oz Low-fat Cheese
1oz Salmon
1 1/3cup cooked Zucchini
1 Plum
1 Tablespoon Avocado
¼ cup light Coconut Milk
= 2.5 Protein blocks/ 2 Carb block/ 6 Fat blocks

5:15 PM
3 Turkey meatballs w/ Marinara sauce
1 Plum
1 Tbls Almond butter
= 3 Protein blocks/ 1 Carb block/ 5 Fat blocks

8:30 PM (PWO meal)
2oz Buffalo stew meat
1 cup Homemade Coleslaw
.5 cup Strawberries
= 2 Protein blocks/ 1.5 Carb block/ 0 Fat blocks

Total Daily Blocks 10 Protein/ 5.5 Carb/ 16 Fat

Tuesday (Non-Workout Day)
8:00 AM
1 Hard-boiled egg
Plain, non-fat Greek Yogurt
1 Plum
Coffee w/ heavy whipping cream
¼ cup Coconut Milk
= 3 Protein blocks/ 2 Carb block/ 6 Fat blocks

12:00 PM
2 Turkey meatballs w/ 1oz Cheese
Homemade coleslaw
.25 cup Grapes
Coconut Milk
= 3 Protein blocks/ 2 Carb block/ 4 Fat blocks

4:30 PM
1.5oz Roast Beef w/ Hummus
1 small Apple
= 1.5 Protein blocks/ 1 Carb block/ 2 Fat blocks

7:45 PM
4.5oz Ground beef w/ Marinara and Parmesan Cheese
2 cups cooked cabbage w/ onions
.5 cup Strawberries
= 3 Protein blocks/ 2 Carb block/ 4 Fat blocks

Total Daily Blocks 10.5 Protein/ 7 Carb/ 16 Fat

Wednesday
8:00 AM
4.5oz Ground beef w/ Marinara
1 cup cooked Zucchini
Coffee w/ heavy whipping cream
= 3 Protein blocks/ 1 Carb block/ 8 Fat blocks

12:00PM
1 Hard-boiled egg
2oz Roast Beef
Homemade Coleslaw
1 tbs Hummus
= 3 Protein blocks/ 1 Carb block/ 3 Fat blocks

4:30 PM
2 oz Lite Cheese
2 cups Celery
1 tbs Peanut Butter
= 2 Protein blocks/ 1 Carb block/ 5 Fat blocks

7:30 PM (PWO meal)
1oz Lite Cheese
1oz Chicken
1.5 cups cooked Cauliflower w/ peas
1/3 Sweet Potato, baked
1 cup Strawberries
= 2 Protein blocks/ 3 Carb block/ 0 Fat blocks

Total Daily Blocks 10 Protein/ 6 Carb/ 16 Fat

For about 3 months now, I have been experimenting with my Zone prescription. I thought I would share how exactly I've modify my 10 blocks to tailor my own specific needs.

As you can see, I use "Zone technology", as Robb Wolf calls it, in the basic composition of my meals and only shift blocks depending on my daily needs. By shift my blocks, especially the majority of the carb blocks to the post workout meal, I am able to stabilize my blood sugar levels and feel much better. This works for me because it is specific to me and I've done a lot of work (Mike can attest to this) to tweak it just right.

Pity Party for One.

2008-09-17T12:38:00.000-07:00

This was me during my workout this morning.

"Chief"

How many round in 3 minutes:

3 Power cleans (85#)
6 Pushups
9 Squats

Followed by 1 minute rest

Repeat for 5 Rounds

> 3/3/1/2/2

Doesn't look so bad right? Well it was! Perhaps it was the lack of sleep, or the fact that it was 6am, or the cheat meal I had last nite, or this cold I am fighting off, or fatigue from doing Michael. In any case, I can't make excuses for my performance today. I just wasn't feeling it. I stopped with 30 seconds to go in almost all of the rounds. Then with Dawn's encouragement I tried to go for 4 rounds in Round 2 but was just shy of completing my squats and then could only get one round in on Round 3. For Rounds 4 and 5 I just took it easy and tried to not lose my form on the cleans. When I missed my cleans I said a few in appropriate words and then sat on the floor and pouted. Pathetic.

I will try this workout again another day.

New Standards: Fran

2008-09-16T08:11:00.000-07:00

September 1st marked the beginning or return rather, of an old pull-up standard at CrossFit Oakland. Although chest to bar pull-ups first became the pull-up standard in 2003, they were reintroduced at the CrossFit Games this summer, quickly becoming the source of stress for many CFitters-including myself. Mike Minium, owner and head trainer of CFO, describes the C2B standard, "it's a tough one, to be sure. But the rewards far outweigh any reduced times or scores that may occur on workouts in the short term. This standard requires a higher degree of power output (primarily in the form of explosive hip extension), along with more coordination and accuracy, than the garden-variety kipping pull-up where chin simply has to go over bar."

Here's an excerpt from the CrossFit Journal article published in April 2003:

Technically correct pull-ups:

• Go from full hang to chest pressing tightly to the bar

• Lead with the chest up and shoulders way back

• Are visually directed, that is, a sight line is chosen that is shortened as the body rises to the bar

• Synchronize respiration to the pull-up: inhale down, exhale up

• Are motivated by trying to drive the elbows down to the ground, not by trying to flex the arm!

Pulling the chest to the bar is very hard but encourages fully “opening the chest” and pulling the shoulders back or “closing the back.” In the early stages of developing a pull-up it is acceptable to bring the Adam’s apple to the bar instead of the chest, but leading with the shoulders forward rather than back is a fault that needs to be fixed long before you are going to get to 30 pull-ups.

Read the full article here, courtesy of CrossFit.com.

I've learned that, as with all things in CrossFit, with regular practice this too is attainable.
Yesterday's WOD was "Fran" I finished in 8:42.

(Fran time +10min. before C2B)

The last time I did this was at the 2008 CrossFit Games. I struggled with the new pull-up standard, doing one pull up at a time and was only on the 3rd round of thruster at the 12 minute cut off! Since then I have slowly adapted to the C2B pull-up and can now string together 3-5. Although learning this has taken a fair bit of practice and patience, the result have definately been worth it. I feel much stronger in am able to do pull-ups with more control and precision.

Killer Triple C with peas

2008-09-10T19:57:00.000-07:00

Here a new and flavorful twist on Cauliflower:

Ingredients:
*As always, organic is the way to go.

Cauliflower (1 lg head)
Curry Powder
Coconut Milk (light version preferable)
Onion Peas, frozen
Ginger (optional)

Cut off the leafy part of the cauliflower and then simply tear off the florets. Boil some water in a saucepan to blanch the cauliflower in for a few minutes. Blanching it before you saute will really cut down on the cooking time but isn't necessary. Meanwhile, slice the onion thinly and saute in a frying pan with a little bit of olive oil on medium-low heat. If you're adding ginger, mince and add with onions. Allow the onions to caramelize or become translucent (3-5min), then add curry powder and 1/2 cup coconut milk and continue to stir. Now is a good time to drain the water and throw the cauliflower into the pan with the rest of the mix. Finally, add 1/2 bag of frozen peas. Toss in some salt and pepper and continue to saute until the cauliflower is tender--about 10 minutes. Enjoy!

**Zone Info
4 cups Cauliflower = 1 Carb Block
.5 cups Peas = 1 Carb Block
.5 cups Onion = 1 Carb Block

Aye que Linda!

2008-09-08T18:41:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I did Linda aka "the 3 bars of death" and my all time favorite girl named workout. She really rocks my world! And although I am still not able to do all of the lifts at the prescribed wieght, I am working my way there- one pound at a time.

"Linda"

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of the triplet:

Deadlift: 1 1/2 body weight {172.5 lbs.}
Bench press: body weight {115 lbs.}
Clean: 3/4 body weight {86 lbs.} Rx'd

These are the weights I used:

Deadlift: 161 lbs.

Bench press: 95 lbs.

Cleans: Rx'd

Time: 54:45

3/26/08 was the last time I did this workout finishing in just over 70 minutes. Since then, I've knock off 16minutes from my previous time, but more importantly, I’ve increased my lifts by 31 pounds while still going faster.

Here were my weights 6 months ago:
Deadlift 143
Bench press 85
Clean 83 (rx'd)

I attribute this new PR to 6 months of pretty consistant Rippetoe style training, regularly following CF wods and the big one--my diet. In particular, I have been playing with the timing & macronutrient content of my meals, paying especially close attention to the PWO meal. Finally, I want to emphasize the importance of both of these components--you truly can't have one without the other.

Almost Paleo Meatloaf

2008-09-04T19:40:00.000-07:00

On Tonite's Dinner Menu:

Homemade Meatloaf

2 Pounds lean grass-fed ground beef
1 Lg. Carrot, minced
1 Lg. Onion, minced
3 Celery stalks, thinly sliced
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese*
2 Eggs
2 Garlic cloves, minced
Fresh Parsley or season as desired
Salt & Pepper

*To make this dish 100% Paleo leave out the cheese, but I can't guarantee that it will stay together as nicely (or taste as good).

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then, mix up all the ingredients in a large bowl. Next, dump your colorful hunk of meat into a casserole dish and pop it in the oven for about an hour. Once it's cooled off you're safe to enjoy! Because this dish contains a very small amount of carbs, top it off with some marinara sauce to zone-it-up.

Don't Forget: 1 block Protein = 1.5oz ground beef

P.S. Safeway sells grass-fed beef! Its only $5.49/lb with your Safeway clubcard.
Get some! This is the only good reason to shop there, but it's a damn good one.

Tabata fun!

2008-09-02T19:37:00.000-07:00

Tabata intervals, named after Izumi Tabata, Ph.D., were first developed as a training tool for the Japenese speed-skating team. Tabata, a former researcher at Japan's National Institute of Fitness and Sports in Kanoya and his research team implemented the workout to study its effectiveness on athletic performance. The workout is 20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest for 8 rounds.

The study found that guys who used the routine five days a week for six weeks improved their maximum aerobic capacity (a measure of your body's ability to consume oxygen--the more oxygen you can take in, the longer and harder you'll be able to run) by 14%. What's more, it also improved anaerobic capacity (which measures your speed endurance, or the duration you're able to sprint at full effort) by 28%. So the Tabata Protocol is the rare workout that benefits both endurance athletes and sprinters.

Doesnt' sound so bad? Trust me, it will be the longest 20 seconds of your life. Tabata workouts are perfect on-the-road workouts as they require little to no equipment and they are short and sweet allowing you to get back to your vacation in just 4 minutes! This weekend, while vacationing in lovely Santa Cruz, my boo and I got our Tabata workout on!

Sunday's wod:
125 Meters Hill Sprint x 2
Tabata Jumping Squats
125 Meters Hill Sprint x 2
Tabata Push-ups
125 Meters Hill Sprint x 2
Tabata Box Jumps (onto rock)
125 Meters Hill Sprint x 2
Tabata Deadhang Pull-ups

F.U.E.L.

2008-08-29T09:15:00.000-07:00

Recently, Mike and I held a nutrition seminar at CrossFit Oakland. It went really well and we covered a LOT of material on food choices, Paleo diet and the Zone. I think we could have easily gone on and on about the topic, but it can be a bit overwhelming for beginners. I've found that it is more effective to keep it simple, especially for those who are eating consciously for the first time. The key is to get new clients to adopt some healthy eating habits from the get go.

As a trainer and someone who's been there, it is incredibly frustrating to come into the gym and bust your ass on the WOD yet never see the results of your hard work. In order to fully experience the benefits of CrossFit training, you've got to provide your body with the fuel it needs. From a medical perspective, changing someones diet is probably the best thing I can do for them. If a client is Xfitting regularly, then they've already done half the work. The next step, and most important change comes with a commitment to a healthy diet. Michael Pollan said it best in the first line of his book In Defense of Food, “Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much.”

Here is a list of some basic food recommendations. Personally, I feel that it's more important to get the junk out of your diet and focus on food choices before getting into the more technical stuff like counting blocks.

1. Eat REAL food.

-Meaning, only food that you can find & eat in its original and natural form.

-Fruits, vegetables, meat, nuts, seeds and dairy(cheese, milk, plain yogurt)

-If it has a label on it, chances are its not real food.

2. Eat protein with every meal.

-Something that once had a face.

-Grass feed animals are preferable.

-Dairy is okay.

-Beans, seaweed, nuts and quinoa are not protein.

-Again, Face=Protein

3. Eliminate (or Limit) Gluten from your Diet

-Wheat, flour, barley, oats, spelt, rye, millet, quinoa (am I forgetting any?)

-Beware: a lot of foods have gluten added to them, remember to read labels, especially meats.

-Gluten is a protein that has been linked to a lot of disease including, but not limited to; auto-immune disease, Celliac disease and inflammation.

4. Take Fish Oil

-Improves brain function

-Prevents heart disease

-Reduces inflammation and joint pain

-Facilitates fat loss and recovery

Loco por Coco!

2008-08-12T13:56:00.000-07:00

Today I will share the latest thing to hit my taste buds: coconut milk. Not only is this creamy substance sweet and delicious, it is also a great source of fat! Not to mention it has a very low Glycemic load, giving it 2 thumbs up from Dr. Sears.

It is anti-carcinogenic, anti-microbial, anti-bacterial, and anti-viral. The main saturated fat that it contains, lauric acid, is also found in mother's milk and has been shown to promote brain development and bone health. –wisegeek.com

Its very versatile adding just a hint of sweetness to any dish, among the most common are soup and curry. And for those of us with a sweet tooth this is the perfect fix for those post meal cravings.

My favorite dessert concoction:
1 cup Blueberries (or fruit of choice)
1/3 cup chilled Coconut Milk
Cinnamon
Almonds (optional)
***Note: TJ's sells a “light” canned coconut milk that contains less fat and 0 carbs for less than a buck! Get some!

Yesterday's Meals:

8:00 AM
2 oz Light cheddar cheese
1 oz roast beef
Fresh mixed greens w/ apple, carrots, and avocado
Coffee w/ heavy whipping cream

1:00 PM
4.5oz Salmon
Fresh mixed greens w/ apple, carrots, and avocado
2 tbs raw Sauerkraut

6:00 PM
½ Cliff’s Builder bar

8:00 PM
(Post workout meal)
2.5oz Chicken w/ spinach
½ baked sweet potato
2 plums
¼ cup grapes

Yesterday's Workout

10 GHD Sit-ups

10 Back Extensions

65 pound Thrusters, 30 reps

50 Pull-ups
30 GHD Sit-ups

30 Back Extensions

65 pound Thrusters, 20 reps

35 Pull-ups

50 GHD Sit-ups

50 Back Extensions

65 pound Thrusters, 10 reps

20 Pull-ups

=33:56 (chest to bar pull-ups)

New Deadlift PR!

2008-08-08T11:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's wod was pretty brief (thank God) so I finished my workout with some wieghted pull-ups and deadlifts.

At CrossFit Oakland

"Karen"

150 wallballs for time w/ 14 pound ball

=11:54

First of all, I really don't care for wall balls. I'm a small person and getting the ball up to the 10' target isn't easy. Unfortunately, this is exactly why I didn't get the Rx'd credit for this wod.

Weighted Pull-ups 5x3

5-5-4

w/ 5 pound weight

Deadlift 5-3-3-2-2 reps

134-153-165-180-180

I haven't tested my 1RM in a long time, but 180 is more than I have ever lifted, putting my 1RM well beyond my goal of 1 1/2x BW. Hooray! Tom C. was watching the last set of 2 and said that my back was a little soft and that I "hitched" on my last rep. This is pretty typical when lifting near your max, but I'll be careful to watch for this next time I attempt heavy deads.

Thanx for the pointers Tomas!

Food Today:

6:30 AM

Lg. Americano

w/.5tbs heavy whipping cream

8:15AM (Post Work-out Meal)

2oz Turkey

1 Plum

4.5 oz Sweet potato

=2P/4C/0F

11:30AM

.75 cup Non-fat Cottage Cheese

w/ cinnamon & coconut milk

Coffee w/.5tbs heavy whipping cream

=3P/1C/8F

Workout this AM:

"Nuke'd by Nicole"

Row 2000M

then 5 rounds of the following 3 exercises:

7 pull-ups (chest 2 bar)

7 OHS (65 pounds)

7 Burpees

finish with 50 Double Unders

=26:12

Much love the Folks

2008-08-05T08:38:00.000-07:00

My parents came to visit this weekend and as usual they graciously brought me a medley of fresh vegetables from their garden. This summers harvest yielded onion, garlic, tomato, zucchini, basil, parsley, bell pepper, chili and eggplant. Yesterday I got to chopping and cooking most of these all up in a zesty and delicious Ratatouille! It was truly an organic cooking experiment with no measuring or recipe-reading involved, I simply threw all my veggies into a large pot and voila! The parsley added a nice flavor and it turned out rather nicely for my first attempt.

And because I am a total nerd, I will leave you all with some interesting facts about Parsley:

From WHFoods.org:

Parsley's volatile oils-particularly myristicin-have been shown to inhibit tumor formation in animal studies, and particularly, tumor formation in the lungs. Myristicin has also been shown to activate the enzyme glutathione-S-transferase, which helps attach the molecule glutathione to oxidized molecules that would otherwise do damage in the body. The activity of parsley's volatile oils qualifies it as a "chemoprotective" food, and in particular, a food that can help neutralize particular types of carcinogens (like the benzopyrenes that are part of cigarette smoke and charcoal grill smoke).

The flavonoids in parsley-especially luteolin-have been shown to function as antioxidants that combine with highly reactive oxygen-containing molecules (called oxygen radicals) and help prevent oxygen-based damage to cells. In addition, extracts from parsley have been used in animal studies to help increase the antioxidant capacity of the blood.

In addition to its volatile oils and flavonoids, parsley is an excellent source of two vital nutrients that are also important for the prevention of many diseases: vitamin C and vitamin A (notably through its concentration of the pro-vitamin A carotenoid, beta-carotene).

Yesterday's Meals

8:15 AM
3 Eggs w/ spinach, onions, salsa
Lg. Americano w/ Cream (fat source)

11:00AM
6 Almonds

2:15 PM
3oz Pastrami
Broccoli Slaw w/ hummus and celery
1 Apple

5:30 PM
2oz Chicken
½ cup blueberries
1/3 cup coconut milk

8:30 PM
1.5oz grass-fed Beef
1 cup home-made Ratatouille w/ cheese
6 walnuts

The results are in!

2008-08-04T14:38:00.000-07:00

I just received the lab results from my blood lipid test.
The numbers on the left are my points and the numbers on the right represent Kaiser Hospital’s “healthy” or normal ranges.

Triglycerides 55 Less than 199

HDL 97 Greater than 45

LDL 98 Less than 129

Glucose 85 60-99

I was in a fasted state, as one should be when they take this; however I had just returned from my trip and hadn’t slept in more than 24hours. I think this may be the reason why my glucose level is a bit high. Or it may just be a symptom of my carb-sensativity. Nonetheless, it is slightly more elevated than I would like it to be.

On the bright side, my triglycerides are low and HDL are high. Still, I am not so sure about the LDL levels. I was informed that it is more important to know the partical SIZE rather than the quantity. Ideally, the partical size should be large. I will keep this in mind for the next time.

After doing a fair amount of research, I am pretty happy with my test results in general. I am concerned that my glucose levels are on the high end and hope that the next time I test it will be lower.

According to Dr. Barry Sears, a good and easy method of measuring your state of health is to take the triglyceride count and divide it by your HDL (the good cholesterol) count.

Here is mine 0.57 (55/97). Looks like I am doing pretty well.

From page 120 of his Omega Rx Zone book the lower the number, the better.

4: Diseased
3: Poor

2: Good

1: Ideal

Yesterday's WOD from CF national site:

"Griff"
For time:

Run 800 meters

Run 400 meters backwards

Run 800 meters

Run 400 meters backwards

=13:37

I'm Baaaack!

2008-07-31T15:43:00.000-07:00

(the construction crew on the last day of work)

As many of you may already know, I just returned from an amazing week in the Dominican Republic. No, it was not vacation. I had the privilege to serve alongside 24 members of Moraga Valley Presbyterian Church who traveled to the island as a volunteer service project for Kids Alive International. Having previously been to El Arca as a senior at St. Mary’s, I felt especially honored to have another opportunity to love and serve the kids.

During our stay, we enjoyed taking part in various construction and maintenance projects at the Anija School Campus, putting our skills and professional expertise to work. The school serves the children who reside at El Arca and many more who can’t afford public school.

Here are some of the things we did: 1) Together we brought approximately 2,400 pounds of donated supplies including children’s clothing, shoes, athletic equipment, books, backpacks and medicine. 2) We constructed the walls for two classrooms using concrete cinderblocks and cement. These classrooms will be used for future science and art classes at the K-8th school.
3) We painted classroom walls and wooden benches for the cafeteria in addition to the new school sign at the entrance of the campus.
4) Cleaned desks and repaired doors and tables.

After work, some of us headed out into the barrios to lead bible study while others, including myself, ventured to El Arca for some futbol!! The kids ran circle around me as I dodged the soccer ball for fear of it landing on my head. When I finally got the ball I tried to redeem myself with a desperate attempt to make a goal, just to have it blocked by a 4 year old! I had a blast and they enjoyed laughing at me.

Although it is gratifying to know that we provided a service with our physical labor and much needed donations, I feel that it I was the one who was blessed to be a part of the lives of these kids and the recipient of their tremendous love. I hope to remain close to the kids and community at El Arca and look forward to future visits.

Thank you all for your love and support and I ask that you continue to pray for these kids and the Kids Alive family.

If you are interested in sponsoring a child or giving to Kids Alive please visit their website.

First post trip WOD:

"Helen"

Three rounds for time:

Run 400 meters

1 pood Kettlebell X 21 swings (or 35 pound dumbbell swing)

12 Pull-ups

=11:54 (Chest to bar pull-ups)

Not Just for Pie

2008-07-16T06:44:00.000-07:00

Today I will share my new favorite recipe to commemorate the completion of my first year of Zoning or more preferably, conscious eating. So here it is for your enjoyment:

Pumpkin-Apple Delight

1 cup whole Pumpkin, canned & unsweetened

1/2 a granny smith Apple, cubed

9 Almonds

Cinnamon, to taste

=3 blocks carbs & fat

***I like to serve this dish cold but it is just as good hot. It's the perfect post workout meal consisting of the starchy carbs essential in replenishing glycogen stores. Feed those muscles!

Note: For optimal results supplement this yummy treat with protein.

Yesterday's Food:

6:00 AM
½ cup lowfat Cottage Cheese w/ Walnuts

10:00 AM
2oz Lite Cheese
1 cup Grapes

12:15 PM
1.5oz ground grass fed Beef
½ an Avocado
Marinated artichoke hearts

3:30 PM
3oz ground grass fed Beef
½ an Avocado
Cherry tomatoes w/ marinated artichoke

7:30 PM
1 turkey Sausage w/ marinara

Pumpkin-Apple delight

Semi-Annual Assesment

2008-07-08T12:13:00.000-07:00

Eeek! As we make our way into the second half of 2008, I wanna take a moment for some thoughtful reflection.

This year's fitness goals:

To focus more on strength training. Earlier this year, I set some reasonably attainable goals for myself (see below). The plan was to supplement CF with some Rippetoe style lifts every 3rd/4th day however, my work trips and busy schedule have been limiting factors in this effort thus far. This became very apparent at the CrossFit Games when I had to scale down 2 of the 4 workouts, exposing a part of my training regimen that needs extra attention. Next year I hope to complete all of the wods as Rx'd and within the time limit.
Listed below are goals and current standing.

Power Lifts
Back Squat: 1 X 171 pounds(1.5xBW)

135x5

Deadlift: 1 X 199 pounds(1.75xBW)

175x3
Bench Press: 1 x 114 pounds(BW)

110x1
Shoulder Press: 1 X 85 pounds(.75xBW)
65x3

Oly Lifts
Power Clean: 1 X 114 pounds(BW)

95x1
Power Snatch: 1 X 85.5 pounds(.75xBW)

1x68

Yesterday's Meals

7:45AM
3oz Pastrami
1 Avocado, sliced
Spinach Salad w/ Tomatoes & Alfalfa sprouts

12:00PM
3oz Pastrami
1 cup sliced Cherry Tomatoes w/ Hummus
6 Almonds

4:30PM
2% Fage yogurt w/ Almond meal and Flaxseed meal
6 Walnuts
Cinnamon

8:00PM
2oz Tuna
½ Apple
1 cup Pumpkin w/ cinnamon

3...2...1...

2008-07-04T08:54:00.000-07:00

Only 24 hours until the CrossFit Games!

We me luck, as this weekend I will be one of many crossfitters to compete in the 2nd Annual CrossFit Games! Crossfit Oakland will be in the house!

Team CFO has been training hard and we have 16 athletes competing (including myself): Nabil, Brandon, Patrick, Daniel, Tamara, Candace, Loren, Connor, Lance, Journey, Sierra, Laura, Audra, Tom and Mike.

We will be doing the following WODs over the course of two days:

Workout A: 12 minute time limit
21-15-9
Thrusters
Pull-Ups
Men=95#
Women=65#
Standards: Thruster-Hip crease below knee cap. Thruster- Full lock out/ear must be visible from the side. Pull-Ups-Any part of the chest from the clavicle down physically touches the bar.

Workout B: 12 Minute Time Limit
5 Rounds:
275# DL Men
185# DL Women
10 Burpees
Standards: Deadlift-Legs at full extension at the top, with shoulders behind the plane of the bar/weight must touch the ground for each rep. Burpees-Chest and thighs touch the ground, hands clap overhead while airborne, ears must be visible in front of your arm.

Workout C: 20 minute cut-off
750 m uphill run

Workout D:
Hopper will decide Saturday night for Sunday competition.

Now if I can only get over the nervousness long enough to get some sleep and food....

I Got Tanked! Again.

2008-06-30T12:35:00.000-07:00

The tank visited our gym last week. I'm not so happy to report the results......

On January 31st I weighed 112 pounds and my bodyfat percentage was at 12%.

Although I was satisfied with my body composition, I wanted to see if I could gain more muscle, and consequently lean out a bit. At the same time, I the Zone was beginning to consume my life and drive me a little insane. Specifically, it doesn't allow for any flexibility. Just as CrossFit is founded on constantly varied movements, I believe my diet should follow a similar pattern. So, in my effort to "change things up" producing muscle gain and fat loss, I played around with my Zone block prescription. Recently, I've even experimented with the NHE eating plan.

Six months later, I had increased my bodyfat by 1%, taking me up to 13% at 114 pounds.

I guess it could have been worse, but I had a hard time swallowing this one. Clearly, my efforts were fruitless. I don't think it was a mistake to allow myself to stray from the strict 10 Zone block allotment however, the caloric restriction may have been too aggressive signaling my body to (gasp) store fat.

Thankfully, I attended the Nutrition seminar at NorCal Crossfit and got a lot of good insight into my diet and nutrition in general. Robb Wolf is the man, he really knows his shit. Most importantly, I learned that I am carb sensitive and how to modify my diet to control this sensitivity.

My diet modifications:

1) Eat 4 meals/day

2) 3/4 meals; add fat blocks and subtract carb blocks.

3) 4th meal; add carb blocks and eliminate all fat blocks.

4) Time my "carb-up" meal after my workout.

5) Weigh and measure ALL my foods.

What are you training for?

2008-06-26T10:12:00.000-07:00

Why are you doing that? What is that called? How much does that thing weigh?

These were some of the questions directed to us while Mike and I got our CrossFit on during our vacation. Not surprising, the kids were most intrigued, as the workouts were on or near the monkey bars at the children's playground. I had a lot of fun doing these workouts, it's nice to get out of the box every once in a while and humiliate yourself in front of a bunch of kids:)

Workout #1

Location: Beach, South Lake Tahoe

3 Rounds of:

50 walking lunges

8 one arm KB swings, each arm, 25# DB

12 Pull-ups

Time 9:47

Finisher: Tabata Push-ups: 4

Workout #2

Location: Todd Grove Park, Ukiah, CA

3 Rounds of:

10 Stonewall Jumps

3 DB Snatches, left arm #25DB

2 DB Snatches, right arm #25DB

8 one arm KB swings, each arm, 25# DB

Time 5:19

Workout #3

Location: Lake Merritt, Oakland

How many rounds in 20 min?

10 Thrusters, 20# Dumbells

10 Pull-ups

10 Rounds+ 2 Pull-ups

Fun in the Sun

2008-06-24T13:39:00.000-07:00

Family baseball game in the park (catcher, big bro).

I just returned from a fabulous vacation with my boo! It began in sunny Lake Tahoe with a slight detour in Chico for a highly anticipated nutrition seminar, and finally ended in Ukiah for a short rendezvous with the folks. In between all the driving, we did a lot of napping, playing, tanning, and eating! We even managed to fit in 3 outdoor workouts. But there's really nothing like some serious rest, I highly recommend that anyone committed to healthy living (which everyone reading this blog should be) make an effort to take it easy every once in a while, especially if you're Xfitting! In order to fully reap the benefits of your hard work you must give your body a chance to recover.

And for the rest of you.....
Stay tuned for the On-the-Road Wods
Equipment: 1 Dumbell 25# & Monkey Bars

9Am
3oz Turkey Breast
9 Cashews
1.5 cups Broccoli & Cauliflower, steamed
1:30PM
3oz Turkey Breast
9 Almonds
1.5 cups Broccoli & Cauliflower, steamed
5:30PM
.5cups Low Fat Cottage Cheese
6 Cashews

8:30PM

2oz Birria (goat meat)

Spinach soup

Cashews

No Workout Today.

A happy Father's Day, indeed!

2008-06-15T20:52:00.000-07:00

I am happy to announce that my dad's attempt to lose 10 pounds, per his doctor's request, was a success!

High blood pressure and steady weight gain prompted his doctor's recent concern over my dad's health. Although Dr. Cowin didn't provide him with specific instructions on how he should go about loosing the weight, my dad took it upon himself to GET IT DONE! And he did.

Naturally, I quickly stepped in to offer up 257 different ways he could take on this 10 pound beast! He simply nodded his head and did it his own way, quietly. 7 weeks later my dad has successfully lost the weight and is feeling great! He looks amazing and must say I was shocked and thrilled when I saw him on Father's day. He said he didn't modify his diet necessarily, instead he just focused on the quantity of food consumed at every meal, "I decided I didn't have to feel stuffed every time I ate".

Rear View

2008-06-12T16:39:00.000-07:00

Kelly Starrett owner of San Fransisco CrossFit, dropped by CFO yesterday for a much appreciated and incredibly insightful lecture on back health. Not only is he a badass Crossfitter, Kelley is also a physical therapist at the Stone Clinic in SF. He really knows his stuff! I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend the lecture and meet Kelly. Here are just a few pieces of valuable information that I walked away with:

1. Don't neglect your posterior chain! Just because we can't see our backside as easily as our front (abs), it's no excuse for a weak back and hamstrings. In the future I plan to do more back extensions and less sit ups!

2. Pay close attention to head and neck position, especially while doing heavy lifting. It is imperative to maintain a neutral position (in alignment with the spine) at all times. Think of the back as a whole system!

3. Stretch! This is key for improving hamstring and quad flexibility yielding stronger, faster workouts. (I am ashamed to admit I'm definitely guilty of this one).

7:30AM
Fish (leftovers)
handful of Walnuts
1 cup Strawberries
1/2 tsp peanut butter

11:30AM
3 oz Pastrami
1/2 Avocado
1 cup Strawberries

2:30pm
Ceaser Salad
1/3 Cantaloupe
1/2 cup Fage Yogurt
1 Slice of raw Blue Cheese
1/2 tsp peanut butter

Dinner (?) probably Wholefood

Workout:
Seven rounds for time of:
10 One legged squats, alternating
12 Ring dips
15 Pull-ups
=58:22

I can't get full-range on my Pistols so I squatted to a target. The dips took FOREVER. Mostly singles.

Hormonal binge

2008-06-10T15:05:00.000-07:00

Lately, I've been playing around with my zone prescription. Awhile back I started feeling a bit Zoned out and picked up Natural Hormonal Enhancement by Rob Faigin. I've been doing the NHE eating thing on the fly as I've been reading his book. However, I advise that you never start a new diet without reading all the fine print first, particularly if it varies drastically from your current feeding ritual. While I haven't sabotaged my diet entirely, I've managed to gain 3.5 pounds. Oops. My bad.

Yesterday I finished the book and I am excited to start the diet! The right way. For more information on the NHE diet visit Faigin's website: www.hormonalfitness.com

Today's Meals:
7:45AM
Shredded Chicken w/ cheese
Salad w/ tomatoes, guacamole, onions & salsa
Coffee w/ Cream

11:15Am
Tuna Salad
A handful of Walnuts & Cashews
Black Tea

2:30PM
3oz Shredded Chicken
1 Granny Smith Apple
Peanut Butter

No workout Today.

Move over, Batman

2008-06-06T16:50:00.000-07:00

A big thanks to fellow crossfitter, Angela Lim for bringing this wod to my attention. She spent the week preceding memorial day at CF Boston and came home with this crazy mash-up workout that they did for memorial day.

WOD: Hero Mash-up
Run 1 mile
21 Handstand push-ups
21 Thrusters, 95 pounds/65 women
21 Overhead Squats, 95 pounds
Run 800 meters
50 Back Extensions
50 Pull-ups
50 KB swings, 2 pood
Run 400 meters
21 40#/25# DB Snatches, left arm
21 40#/25# DB Snatches, right arm
21 L-pullups
Run 1 mile

I had to scale down some of the weights, use a target for my HSPU and I even did kipping L-Pull-ups. However, no amount of scaling down could have made it that much easier, this thing was a killer and its long...I'm just happy its over. My time= 1:08:11

2008-06-03T17:25:00.000-07:00

My infrequent blogging is frustrating and a direct result of some hectic in my life.
Lemme quickly do some serious catching up.....

The good: A great week at CFO! I was back on the training floor which always makes me happy:) Getting to bed early and beginning my day with an early morning workout sets the tone for a great day! Last week, I was able to get to hit all of the CF wods and even fit in some time for lifting.

The not so Good: I spent the weekend in Lake Tahoe for a girlfriend's bachelorette party, where I did my fair share of some good, old fashioned drinkin'. As to be expected. What are friends for, right? Needless to say, I completely fell of the diet for about 48 hours. Oh, and in case you were wondering; tequila, wine, champagne and bud lite. I made sure to chase my drinks down with lots and lots of nuts, meat and cheese in an effort to stay somewhat close to the Zone. We didn't go to the Lake once:(

Sunday & Monday I made up the workouts that I missed while I was gone and today I did Hang Power Snatch 1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1reps. I failed at 65# after attempting it 7 times.

8:00AM
Avocado slices wrapped in Pastrami
1 cucumber sliced

12:15PM
+/- 2 ounces Sheep's Milk Cheese w/ Salami

2:30PM
Lg. Green Salad w/ radishes, onions, egg and chicken

Home at Last!

2008-05-27T12:31:00.000-07:00

After 3 HOT weeks in the desert, I am finally back in Oakland! Hooray! Upon my arrival on Friday afternoon, I headed straight to CFO to get my long awaited Xfit on! There's nothing like 5 rounds of GHD situps and Knees-to-Elbows to kick off my first day back!

The following morning I felt like someone had used my stomach as a punching bag! After the initial pain settled, I managed to get myself out of bed (without the use of my abs) and back over to CFO for s'more fun at the Affiliate Throw down! I had such a great time meeting, couching and competing with people from other Bay Area Crossfit gyms. The hopper-style workout was downright painful but totally worth it: high rep squats followed by more squatting and then a run-what more could I ask for?

On Sunday I rested:)

8:15am

3 Eggs scrambled w/ 1 whole red onion

Crushed cashews

=3 blocks protein/3 blocks fat/ .5 blocks carbs.

12:15pm

2.5oz Tuna, canned

15 Cashews

1 cucumber sliced

=2.5 blocks protein/5 blocks fat/1 block carbs.

I will eat 2-3 more meals today & workout:)

Day 11

2008-05-14T20:08:00.000-07:00

For the last two days I have worked out at CrossFit SouthWest located just outside of Phoenix. Ken is the owner/trainer of the gym, aside from running the gym, he is very busy moving into a beautiful new space. Congratulations to Ken on his new box! He has a great group of crossfitters that together create a really nice community. I feel totally welcomed there and am very grateful to be working out with them.

Ken, who doesn't always follow the national WODs, posts each day's workout on his blog.
Check it out here.

6:30am
1 container 2% plain Fage Greek Yogurt

10:00am
1 String cheese
Carrots w/ Peanut Butter

1:45pm
3 String Cheese
Green beans
Cherry tomatoes
Peanut butter

4:15pm
2oz Salami
1.5 cups Brocolli
Dressing

8:00pm
3oz Salmon, canned
.5 cup Salsa
4 tbs Guacamole

Update

2008-05-11T21:41:00.000-07:00

Alright here's a quickie update of my week in Arizona:

Work
Work is moving pretty steadily and although it is really neat to be on a site, I must admit that getting back into field work has been pretty rough for me. A typical work day on this site involves shoveling dirt and gravel into 5gal. buckets that are then dumped into mesh screens where the dirt is sifted for artifacts. As you can image, this process is physically demanding and requires some serious stamina-thank god for CF! The worst part is the heat. I am slowly starting to get into it though and feel thankful for that.

WODs
Tuesday 5/6: Row 5K
Wednesday 5/7: Rest day
Thursday 5/8: CF Southwest 40 Snatches for time w/ partner
Friday 5/9: CF Southwest How many front squat in 10min? =86 @ #65
Saturday 5/10: GloboGym Fran = 11min.
Sunday 5/11: GloboGym BenchPress 5x5 @ #90, Deadlift 5x5 @ #175(only got 3/5), Weighted Pullups 5x3 @ #15
**I will share my experience at both of these gyms in further detail in a future post.

Diet
Aside from my weekend carb-loading, my diet has remained fairly green! I was a bit concerned that I wouldn't be able to eat greens while in the field, but it really hasn't been an issue. Here is a list of some of my daily food items:
Hard boiled eggs
Cheese
Tuna (of course)
Salmon, canned
Cherry Tomatoes
Celery
Strawberries
Carrots
Pumpkin Seeds
Avocado
Peanut Butter (of course)
Salami
Bell peppers
Broccoli
Spinach

Today's Wod: GloboGym "Fight Gone Worse"= TBD

1st wod: failure, kinda

2008-05-06T10:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I attempted to workout in the "weight room" at the place I'm staying at...bad idea.

I was starting my first set of sprints and all of a sudden the belt on the tredmill tore! It simply ripped right down the middle and then made a horrible screeching noise before the whole machine just locked up and died. I then proceeded to quickly and quietly exit the room.

Today I will check out a local gym that may better accommodate my training style. I am not sure which crossfit workout I will do, it will likely be one that involves dumbbells. I'll have to get creative again.

Yesterday's wod 50 Burpees for time : approx. 5 min.

Food consumed today:

***For the record, I do eat dinner! The meals posted on this blog are those eaten prior to publishing the post. Who doesn't eat dinner, geez?

7:45am
1/2 cup low fat Cottage Cheese w/ peanut butter and strawberries

On the Road Again....

2008-05-04T22:57:00.000-07:00

And just as I started getting comfy back at CFO, I get shipped off to AZ for a few weeks of some serious manual labor in the blazing sun. Sweet!

Just got in an hour ago and I'm off to bed....stay tuned for some pretty consistent blogging. I'll be doing most of workouts outdoors/anyway anyhow. Fortunately, I am staying in a fairly metropolitan area so I will be using the globo gym when I can.

Today's Wod:

Linda

10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1

Deadlift #144

Bench# 90

Clean# 83.5 (3/4 BW)

*DNF (Got through 6's but had to catch my plane)

Day 3: Yippie!

2008-04-30T19:21:00.000-07:00

Alright, so I completed my third day on MD today and things are surprisingly easy!
I haven't had any major cravings for sugar just yet, nor do I feel that deprived.
The best part is that it has freed me of my measuring cups, spoons and scale!
For the first time in almost a year I have the liberty to eat as much protein, fat and veggies as I want. It's comforting to know that I don't have to plan my entire day around my meals!

Workout Today: CrossFit Oakland
From the National Site)
How many rounds in 20 minutes?
10 Thrusters @ 45 pounds
10 Pull-ups
= 9 Rounds
BTW, that ish was hard:)

Going Green!

2008-04-28T11:06:00.000-07:00

Fellow Crossfitter, Max and my sister Maria got into a bit of a heated debate at this saturday's CFO birthday bash. What about? Fat. Yep, fat.
Like most Americans, she too has fallen for the out-dated and unfounded theory that dietary fat is what makes people fat and kills them. The argument is overly-simplistic and just plain false.

This all started of course when Max and I were discussing our fascination with Dr. Di Pasquale's Metabolic diet, which we have both committed to trying out. It is essentially a high fat/protein diet that limits your carb intake to 30g of active carbs/day Monday through Friday followed by two days of high carb intake. Basically, at the end of the week I will be meeting all my fat/protein/carb zone block requirements with a little variation. If all goes as well, this will promote a positive hormonal response that will help pave the way for some major fitness gains!

Here's how it's broken down:

Monday-Friday: High Fat/Protein Intake. Carbs not to exceed 30g/day and will consist primarily of leafy greens and vegetables.
The plentiful supply of fat causes a metabolic shift from primarily burning carbs to primarily burning fats. Insulin levels remains low (which increases GH release). Increased dietary fat is also linked to increased testosterone levels

Saturday - Sunday: High carb, medium fat (30..40%), low protein (10..15%).
This causes an insulin spike. While this can increase fat deposits, it moves more nutrients into your muscles, and has an anabolic effect. The important thing is to switch back to the high fat / low carb mode before you put on too much fat.
(Taken from Impulseadventures website).

Today's workout: Thrusters 1-1-1-1-1-1-1
70/80/90/95/95/100(failed)/100(failed, but got later that day:)

8:00AM
3 Eggs scrambled w/ red onions and Kale
1oz Raw goat cheese
3 Almonds
Lg. Coffee w/ cream

12:00PM
3oz Turkey breast
Lg. Salad w/ Spinach, Arugula and sprouts
2 Tbs. Blue Cheese dressing
Lg. Coffee w/ cream

Rest Pays off Again!

2008-04-25T11:24:00.000-07:00

(photo taken today at Crossfit Oakland)

Today's workout:
From the CrossFit National site: Deadlift 3-3-3-3-3 reps.

My numbers: 105-125-145-160-170

**My previous 1 rep max was 165 pounds!

Yet another PR to illustrate the importance of rest and recovery. Recently, I've really made an effort to listen to body and adequately recovery from hard training. My post Utah training has been focused more on results less on just doing the workouts. If I don't feel 100% I'm not going to push it. And no I won't suck it up!

Oh and for the record, I have not given up peanut butter, nor do I have any intention on doing so, I am simply cutting back.

9AM

1oz Chicken

.5 cups Non-fat, plain yogurt

2 Tbs. Flax seed meal

1 Tangelo

=2 Blocks

12:30PM

3oz Tuna Salad

sm. Green Salad

1.5 cups Strawberries

5 Cashews

=3 Blocks

Angie Attacks!

2008-04-24T15:51:00.000-07:00

I did Angie today, or perhaps I should say she did me. I was hoping to beat my last "Angie" time of 37:08 and succeeded! It was nasty and it left my arms and legs feeling very jello-y, but it was so worth it! I proud to say I knock 7 minutes off my last time!
A huge thanks to coach Mike and his, "I don't care if it hurts" approach. Fun, fun, fun!

"Angie"
100 Pull-ups
100 Push-ups
100 Sit-ups
100 Squats
Finished in 30:43

I am currently licking my wounds as I count down the minutes for my next meal.
BTW, its day 5 without Chocolate and I haven't had peanut butter today:)

8am
3 Eggs scrambled w/ broccoli and mushrooms
4 Tbs. Salsa
1 Tangelo
9 Almonds
=3 Blocks

1:15pm
3 oz Chicken sauteed w/ mushrooms and onions
1 Apple
9 Almonds
=3 Blocks

Family Challenge!

2008-04-23T18:36:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I made my way up to Ukiah to enjoy a few days with my dear family. Unfortunately, both of my parents recent medical mishaps made it a bitter sweet trip. My mother's health issues although not serious, are somewhat complicated and I'm not ready to tackle at the moment. On the other hand, my dads current condition is a bit more manageable. His doctor, concerned about his elevated blood pressure, recommended that he drop 10 pounds! Eek!

Now, my father isn't "fat" necessarily, at least not by American standards. You see, my dad is super active. Aside from being an avid gardener, he tends to a small farm, raising and caring for his goats and chickens. Oh, and he has a full-time job at a local winery.

At 65, my dad's activity level rivals that of someone half his age. Although, his days are consumed by highly demanding tasks, his weight is not quite ideal. The other part of the equation: diet. Yup, my dads got to tighten up his diet! For the most part, my dad's diet is fairly healthy, composed of fruits and veggies from his garden and lots of goat milk! His downfall: sugar! Can u believe it?

So, as we sat down for dinner on Sunday nite we all agreed to participate in a family challenge. In an effort to help my dad cut out sugar from his diet, my sisters and I all agreed to give up something we know to be unhealthy. For me, it chocolate...and I grudgingly agreed to cut back my peanut butter consumption. After I finish this last jar that is:) Good luck Papi!

Gettin' Cozy with Nancy

2008-04-16T19:49:00.000-07:00

Today's Workout on the National Site:

"Nancy"

Five rounds for time of:
400 meter run
65 pound Overhead squat*, 15 reps

*This is the weight that is prescribed for women. I am not there yet. I used 55 pounds.

U know those workouts that you avoid like the macaroni salad at a BBQ? This one is it for me. There is just something about Nancy that makes me cringe. I guess it's the combination of OHS and all that running. It seriously makes me wanna hurl.

Surprisingly, I think I may have experienced a change of heart. Nancy isn't any nastier than the any other Crossfit ladies. She simply exposes a weakness of mine and I need to get over it. The weakness being Overhead Squats, of course.

Of all the core lifts, I think this one is the most challenging. Unlike the back squat or deadlift, it doesn't completely tax your legs yet its imperative in developing some serious core strength. OHS require an incredible amount of core stability, shoulder flexibility and concentration.

Last Done: 1/19/08 time 22:27/50.5 pounds
Today: 18:27/55 pounds
Major PR!

Lesson Learned.

2008-04-14T17:07:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I am officially a firm believer in the R word....u know, REST. I mean I know there's been a lot of buzz about it in the fitness community, but I didn't quite get it until now. And this coming from a serious CF junkie!

In the last few days, I've made some notable strength gains across the board, hitting PR's in my Bench, Shoulder Press and weighted pull-up. I also crushed my time in a DU/C+J workout the day after I got back! Crazy huh?

Well, not really, I guess all that talk about the importance of rest did merit some attention after all. In all seriousness, my recent success has been a pleasant and utter surprise. I expected to have a slow and ugly re-entry into the gym, but after having spent 2 weeks away from CFO, I feel stronger and rejuvenated. I think my body finally got the recovery it deserved, it's just too bad I had to be shipped off to the desert for that to happen. Not only does this experience bring to light the need for rest, but it also teaches me that you don't always have to be in a "fancy" gym to get fit. Don't get me wrong, I would do "Linda" over "Barbara" any day, but developing body weight workouts that include difficult variations of exercises (pistols and L pull-ups) will make you lean and mean just as well.

Workout Today: None

8am

2 Eggs w/ Spinach, mushrooms

Fruit Salad (melons)

Coffee w/ Cream

=2 Blocks

12:00pm

Spinach Salad w/ Chicken

1 Tbs. Pumpkin Seeds

=2 Blocks

3:00pm

3oz Turkey

1.5 cups Strawberries

.5 cup Grapes

1 Tbs. Peanut Butter

=3 Blocks

Last On-the-Road-Workout

2008-04-09T16:14:00.000-07:00

(Ceramic sherds found on the survey)

Today I say farewell to Utah and in honor of my last day here I created this fun little wod:

50-40-30-20-10 reps
Walking Lunges w/ heavy backpack (+/- 10 lbs)
Dips
Sit-ups
= 28:00

7:00am
4 Egg whites, hard boiled
5 Bacon slices
1 Apple
1 plum
= 3 Blocks

11:30am
1 Clif Builder's Bar
= 3 Blocks

2:15pm
canned Sardines
1 string Cheese
1 Plum
1 cup Cabbage
1 cup cherry Tomatoes
=3 Blocks, -1 carb Block

Home Stretch!

2008-04-08T19:19:00.000-07:00

Only 3 miles left! Tomorrow we will set out to hike the last 3 miles of our survey! That means I get to come home on Thursday! Whole Foods here I come! After a pit stop at CFO that is:)

Today's Workout:
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Handstand Push-ups (target:1 shoe)
Jumping Squats
Time 10:00

Finisher:
50 Knees to Elbows 4 time= 7:00
3 sets of max L-Pull-ups= 3 (pr)

Tabata This!

2008-04-07T20:14:00.000-07:00

Today we hiked a whopping 10 miles! The sun was shining as we started out on our super long hike, but by mid morning the clouds rolled in and within minutes we got hit by a crazy hail storm! Bam outta no where! We were slippin'n' slidin' all over the place! It made for a looooong day in the desert, that's for sure.

So, yesterday I did a Tabata workout using this nifty little online timer. It allows you to adjust the alerts and display for yourself. Super easy.
http://www.speedbagforum.com/timer.html

Tabata WOD for yesterday:
Jumping pull-ups (using my doorgym)
Push-ups
Sit-ups
Squats
Total Rep: 323

Tabata intervals are 8 rounds of 20 seconds on followed by 10 seconds of rest. They are short, high intensity intervals that are a perfect for those with little time and no equipment.

Today's Wod: Hmm...max rep L- pullups. If I don't pass out first.

Rest Day

2008-04-05T20:13:00.000-07:00

Another 12.5 hour day in the desert and I am feeling pooped! I had a workout planned today but because we worked so late I think I'll save it for tomorrow instead.

7am
2 Egg whites, hard boiled
4 slices Bacon
1 Apple
.5 cup grapes
=3 Blocks

12:30pm
2oz Herring Filets, canned
1 string cheese
1 cup Cherry Tomatoes
1 Plum
.25 Grapes
9 Almonds
=3 Blocks

5:30pm
1 Organic Food Bar
=3 Blocks

8:30pm
3oz Salmon
2 cups Celery
.5 Jicama Root
a whollotta peanut butter
=2 Blocks

Polygamous Pistol Pull-up Medly

2008-04-04T20:12:00.000-07:00

I got the idea for this workout from this month's issue of the CF Journal. These are all movements used to develop the L Pull-up. Except for the pistols of course.

1 Knees to Elbows
2 second L-Hold (hang from bar)
1 Dead Hang Pull-up
5 Pistols (each leg)
1 Knees to Elbows
3 sec. L-Hold
2 Dead Hang Pull-ups
5 Pistols
1 Knees to Elbows
5 Sec. L-Hold
3 Dead hangs
5 Pistols
1 Knees to Elbows
10 sec. L-Hold
4 Dead hangs
5 Pistols
1 Knees to Elbows
15 sec. L-Hold
5 Dead hangs
5 Pistols

Time 20:00

J.T.

2008-04-03T20:07:00.000-07:00

JT is an awesome workout that requires very little equipment. I used 2 chairs from my hotel room as makeshift parallel bars for dips. It was sweet and really hard!
This may not work for taller people but it was just right for me, allowing me to balance on the arm rests while keeping my legs behind me. I'm not sure if I really ever got full range, but I was damn close!

And here's how it went down:
J.T. 21-15-9 reps of:
Handstand Push-ups (to target)
Ring Dips (modified)
Push-ups
= 28:00

7:20am
1 Egg, hard boiled
2 Egg whites, hard boiled
5 slices of Bacon
1 Plum
1 Apple
=3 Blocks
*(due to the pile of bacon on my plate, I didn't think it was necessary to add fat)
11:45am
1/3 Builder Bar
=1 Block
1:15pm
30z Tuna, canned
1 Grapefruit
1 cup celery
.25 cup grapes
1 Tbs peanut butter
=3 Blocks+1 fat block
5:45pm
.5 cup Plan yogurt
=1 Block
8:30pm
3oz Salmon, grilled
1 cup Mushrooms, grilled
1 red bell pepper, grilled
1 cup Jicama root, raw
=2 Blocks
*I finally discovered the grill at the Inn. Yes!
Total Blocks today: 10+1 fat block

Duane's "Food" Market

2008-04-02T20:34:00.000-07:00

There is definitely truth to the saying, "you never really know what you have till its gone."

Whether its juicy peaches picked right from my parent's trees or colorful organic chard from the local farmer's market, fresh produce has always been at my fingertips. I feel very fortunate for this. And even more so as the days that I am away from it drag on....

There is only one grocery store in Fillmore and it's produce selection is very limited, to say the least. It lacks variety; it consists of a few rows of prepacked salad mixes and those little individual baggies of baby carrots. Since when did lettuce come in plastic vacuum sealed bags? Heavens forbid I utter the "O" word. Mostly I've been sticking to the fruit and veggies that aren't super packaged. Oh and let's not forget peanut butter, that's always a safe bet. Surprisingly, they have Adam's all natural peanut butter....mmm

Guess I won't bother boring you with my meals for the day.

CF Workout of the Day
5 rounds of
30 GHD sit-ups
25 Back Extensions

Hotel Wod: 5 rounds of
30 anchored sit-ups
25 Supermen
Time 11:00

Snow days

2008-03-31T19:27:00.000-07:00

(my boss and I singing in the snow)

And the snow keeps falling here in good ole' Utah. There were a whole 5 inches of powdery snow on the ground when I got up this morning. Perfect for snow ball fights, not so good for an archaeological survey. You know what that means? Another short work day for me.
Today's wod: Weighted pull-ups 3-3-3-3-3
I am not sure about the exact weight but I estimate that it was between 8-10 pounds.
I simply filled my back pack with a random selection of stuff and threw it on my back.

Unfortunately I was on unable to get all 3reps off all 5 sets. Shucks.
3-2-3-2-3 (three minutes rest in between).

8am
2 Eggs, hard boiled
4 Bacon slices
1 cucumber, sliced
1 Apple
=3 Zone blocks
12pm
3oz Tuna, canned
1 Grapefruit
9 Almonds
=3 Zone blocks-1 carb block
4pm
2oz Cheese
.5 Apple
1.5 cups Celery
1 Tbs. Peanut butter
=2 Zone blocks+2 fat blocks
8pm
2oz Tuna, canned
3 cups Romaine lettuce
1 Cucumber
.5 Apple
.5 Avocado
=2 Zone blocks

I wonder how long I can survive on tuna and apples?

Murph at the Inn

2008-03-30T15:54:00.000-07:00

Work continued this morning but by 9am a huge storm front came in from Northern Utah, forcing us to call it quits early! Whoohoo!

With a whole afternoon to myself, I decided I would take advantage of the free time to get a good workout in. The drug of choice: Murph. I know, I'm pretty pathetic, but lets not forget, there's a snow blizzard outside and even if there wasn't, I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE!

Here's how it went down:
2 Mile run
100 Sit-ups (replaced the pull-ups)
200 push-ups
300 Squats
My time 49:00

I did the 2 mile run in the beginning because the snow was coming down and I just wanted to get it over with before the weather got any worse. FYI, it's really hard to see where your going with snow in your eyeballs!
I threw in the sit-ups because I'm feeling a little burnt out on the dead hangs. It would be nice to be able to do kipping, but I'mma wait to check out the school monkey bars when it not snowing. It was great to see an improvement on my push-ups, not once did I have to break them into doubles or singles.

7:20am
2 Eggs, hard boiled
4 Bacon slices
.5 Jicama
1 cup Celery w/ peanut butter
=3 blocks+2 fat blocks

1:00pm
2oz Cheese, crumbled
6 cups romaine lettuce
1 cup Cherry tomatoes
1 Lemon, squeezed
Olive oil, drizzled
1 spoon-full peanut butter
=2 blocks+ 2 fat blocks

***I think I have an obsession with peanut butter, its just too damn good.

50 Super-Burpees for Time

2008-03-29T20:54:00.000-07:00

So, while I was out in the 40mph wind in the middle of nowhereville I was thinking of my fellow crossfitters doing FGB! No fair! Oh how I miss you all!
I promised to go home after work and make up an equally gruelling wod for myself. Naturally, at the end of my 10hour day and 5 mile hike in the sand, I felt like doing nothing more than scarfing down some food and watching some crossfit videos....

By 9:00 pm I'd miraculously mustered up enough energy and motivation to do G.I. Jane: 100 super-burpees for time at 50% volume (50 burpee-pull-ups) in 18:00 minutes.
I couldn't really jump to the bar so I finished each burpee with a jump and then completed the move with a dead-hang pull-up.

7:15am
1 cup Plain Yogurt, non-fat
.25 cantaloupe
6 Bacon slices
=3 blocks+2 fat blocks

1:30pm
1 can Tuna
1 Avocado
1 Red Bell pepper, sliced
1.5 cups strawberries
.5 Jicama
=3 Blocks

5:45pm
1 can Herring fillets
1 grapefruit
27 Almonds
=3 Blocks+ alota fat

9:40pm
.5 oz Cheese
1 cup raw Celery
1 Tbs peanut butter
=.5 Block

Total Blocks today: 9.5+27 fat blocks, approx.

3-2-1 Go!

2008-03-28T19:15:00.000-07:00

Thankfully today's hike was not nearly as long as yesterday's!
After walking just 7.5 miles, we got back to the hotel with plenty of time for me to take a quick dip in the pool and come up with a mini-wod for myself.

This was my little creation:
How many rounds in 20 minutes of?
1 L Pull-up (max)
8 Handstand push-ups (target= 2 shoes)
20 Jumps to a Chair
5 rounds + 5 HSPU

I set up my Door Gym in my bathroom doorway and although I can't do kipping pull-ups with it, I can do dead hangs, L- Pull-ups and knee-2-elbows. I'm pretty stoked to have at least 1 L pull-up and am hoping to increase that during my time here. HSPU are perfect for wods on the road, I am definitely a fan. However, the jumps to the chair were kinda tough. I had to land extra softly onto the chair and step down to avoid annoying my downstairs neighbors. I'm gonna have to think of a nice replacement for that one. All in all, it was a pretty good start for my first "hotel room wod".

Longest Day Ever!

2008-03-27T19:45:00.000-07:00

Nothing could have prepared me for this. Not "Fran" or "Murph" not even "Run 10k".

Today was day one of a 65-mile archaeological survey in southern Utah. This is strictly a work-related trip of course. The survey is basically a long walk/hike along an area that will potentially be stripped of its cultural resources by future construction plans. Our job is to record prehistoric and historic sites before they are destroyed and lost forever.

Normally we spread the work out over the course of a few weeks, knocking off 3-5miles a day, depending on how often we have to stop to record sites. But today was not a typical day, by far.

We set out at about 10 this morning and with no sites in sight we kept on trucking, by 3pm my backpack felt like a small child on my back and I swear my feet were bleeding! Okay, my feet weren't bleeding, but really who could have guessed that walking could be sooo painful? Its just walking after all. I guess I should also explain that we were walking in sand dunes; an absolutely unforgiving terrain! Plus the wind and chilly weather didn't make it any easier! Oh and I ran out of water about a third of the way into the hike.

At the end of the day we had covered 27K!
Aside from being physically demanding it was a huge mental challenge. Off to bed!

Reliable Eyes

2008-03-24T08:08:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a fabulous weekend with a bunch of my old college friends. Our annual "Girl's retreat" landed us in breath-taking Yosemite National Park. I had a really nice time catching up with my girlfriends and taking in the spectacular views. A much needed retreat.

Having endured countless drawn-out discussions on food, my friends were fully prepared to accomodate my "special diet" needs while we enjoyed our stay in Yosemite. Being the good friends that they are, they could help giving me grief as they intently watched me prepare my 3 block meals, sans grains of course. The whole no-grains thing didn't go over very smoothly with them either. And I certainly didn't dare bring along my food scale for fear of them labeling me an anorexic and demanding that I seek help for my "eating problem" or something. I know they're just looking out for me and I love them for that. Needless to say, I have gotten really good at eye-balling.

Above is a super helpful key for eyeball measurements when the occasion calls for it.

8am

3oz Chicken Cordon-Bleu

.5 Apple

1.5 cups Squash

1.5 tsp. Organic Peanut Butter

=3 protein/2 carb/5 fat blocks

**I am currently experimenting w/ blocks, tweaking them as needed.

Week 1 off Splenda!

2008-03-19T21:04:00.000-07:00

I am really digging Art Devany's Evolutionary Fitness blog. He offers some unique and thoughtful insight on health, fitness and diet.

Last month De Vany’s wrote on a study published by Susan E. Swithers and Terry L. Davidson of Purdue University called A Role for Sweet Taste: Calorie Predictive Relations in Energy Regulation by Rats. Their research suggests that the human body is "thrown off" by the sweet taste of artificial sweeteners, releasing insulin in the same manner it would respond to sugar...Eeek!

Although they taste delightful, artificial sweeteners may not be as sweet and innocent as they appear. The zero calorie substance contains zero calories, making them a hot item among those seeking the sweetness of sugar without the caloric impact. Unfortunately, this is tough to swallow for those of us who are calorie-conscious but have major weakness for sweets.

2008-03-14T12:31:00.000-07:00

Tis' the season for a variety of nice lettuce. I am definately taking advatange of this opurtunity to enjoy some delicious and wholesome salads. Its fun to experiment with the ingredients by adding various fruits or nuts to come up with your own tasty little creation. Have fun.

On today's menu:

1 small head of Romaine lettuce, chopped

1 small head of Red leaf lettuce, chopped

3oz Buffalo Sirloin, cut into small strips & served cold

.5 Avocado, sliced

1 Tangerine

1 cup Strawberries, quartered

1 large Lemon, squeezed

Dash of olive oil, optional

(Lettuce-1 carb block, Strawberries-1 carb block, Tangerine-1 carb block, .5 Avocado-3 fat

blocks, Buffalo-3 protien blocks)

Workout: None, Rest day

Yesterday's wod @ Crossfit Oakland:

"Michael"
Three rounds for time of:

Run 800 meters

50 Back Extensions

50 Sit-ups

Time 21:31

Zonalicious!

2008-03-13T13:47:00.000-07:00

A nice little 3 blocker.

3oz sliced Turkey

1 small head of Iceberg lettuce, chopped

1 large Cucumber, sliced

1 small Avocado, sliced

1 Tangerine

1-2 Limes

Once you chop up all the ingredients just pile them all up in this order and squeeze the lime juice on top. Its a healthy and fabulous lil' zone lunch that leaves you feeling nice and full. Enjoy.

Ropes O'Glory

2008-03-12T09:16:00.000-07:00

Tamara (my idol) climbing the rope

Alright ya'll I apologize for the lack of attention I've been giving my precious blog these days. I've been a bit busy lately. You see, I turned 25 last week and I've been doing a lotta celebratin'!!!! Ya'll know what I mean.

As much as I would love to continue the partying, its time to get down to business.

I jumped right into it at 6am today along side my fellow Crossfitters, with this nasty one from the National Crossfit site:

"Tommy V" - in memory of yet another fallen soldier

For time:

85 pound Thruster, 21 reps (women's weight)

15 ft Rope Climb, 12 ascents

85 pound Thruster, 15 reps

15 ft Rope Climb, 9 ascents

85 pound Thruster, 9 reps

15 ft Rope Climb, 6 ascents

**Scaled down to 70 pound thrusters

Time 1:01:50

This was a first for me in two respects. First time doing more than 65 pound thrusters. I think I probably could have handled another 5 pounds. Next time. Also, the first time I've ever done that many rope climbs in a workout. I felt like I could have gone faster but then I had to slow down and remind myself that I had to complete 27 ascents!

Overall, it was a great workout and a lovely start to my day! Good work 6am-ers, ya'll were lookin' xtra strong this morning!

8:45am

3 Eggs scrambled w/...

2 cups Cauliflower

.5 cup onions

1 head Bok Choy

3Tbs. Avocado

Large coffee w/cream

=3 zone blocks+1 fat block

Give and Take

2008-03-04T14:24:00.000-08:00

On Sunday I did “Angie”

100 Pull-ups
100 Push-ups
100 Sit-ups
100 Squats
Finished in 37:08
This was a whopping 10 minutes faster than my previous time!

Woo-hoo!

An another note, it took me almost an hour to slogg through “Linda” yesterday, which by the way is my all time favorite Crossfit wod. Its one of those workouts that makes you see stars while you’re doing it and then feeling like a star after you’ve completed it. Okay, so that’s a little cheesy, but you know what I mean.

“Linda”
10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 reps of:
Deadlifts at 1.5x Body Weight
Bench Press at Body Weight
Cleans at ¾ Body Weight

***Since I cannot yet do all of Linda as Rx’d, this is my modified version of “Linda”:
Deadlifts: 143 pounds (1.29 x Body Weight)
Bench press: 85 pounds (just over ¾ Body Weight)
Cleans: 83.5 pounds (Rx’d)
Finished in 57:30

This was brutal and I truly did slogg through this workout 1 rep at a time. I was about 12 minutes slower than my previous time back in November, but this time I increased my total poundage by 22.5 pounds! Not too bad considering all the extra weight. If I stay on track, I hope to be able to do it as Rx’d by the end of the year! Maybe.

5am
Venti Coffee w/ lots of cream
=2 Fat blocks

8am
3oz Chicken
1 Orange
1 sliver of Chocolate cake (Chocolate is my favorite, what can I say?)
9 Almonds
=3 zone blocks+1 unfavorable carb block

12pm
3oz Tuna Salad w/ mayo
1 Cucumber
¼ cup garbanzo & kidney beans
6 cups Romaine lettuce
9 Almonds
=3 zone blocks+1 fat block

Today's wod: "Filthy 50"

Scheduled to do at 5pm at CFO

Gettcha mind right!

2008-02-28T11:16:00.000-08:00

This morning I glanced at my calendar and had to do a double take. I remember the New Year’s celebration as if it was just the other day, yet March is just around the corner, yikes! How easily I get swept up in the whirlwind of life and completely lose my concept of time. Where have the past 8 weeks gone? Sometimes I feel as though living one day at a time can be somewhat of an uphill battle.

To kick off the beginning of the 2ND quarter of 2008, I’ve decided to reflect upon this year’s goals. In doing so, I hope to regain some focus and like my good friend Angela always says, “get my mind right”.

1) 1 Muscle up: Still have a ways to go, but I've been practicing like crazy.
2) 10 consecutive Kipping Pull-ups: I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I think I have about 3-5.
3) 1 Ring Dip: I am happy to report that I finally got a dip on the rings! I can do about 4. One step closer to that muscle-up!
*I also want to commit to really focusing on lifts that I am exceptionally weak in: OH Squat, Snatch and Shoulder Press.

8:30AM
3oz Chicken
1.5 cups steamed Chard in tomato sauce
.5 Apple w/ peanut butter
Coffee w/ cream
=3 Zone blocks+1.5 fat blocks

When Eva Strikes

2008-02-25T13:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday’s wod on the CrossFit national site was named “Eva” but I think they may have left out an “L” at the end of that name; it was down right ugly. Although my body may have been ready for her after having taken Saturday off, I’m not so sure anything could've really prepared for this one. It can best be described as Cracked-out Helen, as it resembles Helen in movements but at a far greater volume, making it physically demanding in addition to being incredibly challenging mentally.

"Eva"

Five rounds for time of:
Run 800 meters
2 pood Kettlebell swing, 30 reps (I used 1 pood)
30 Pull-ups

55:19 (i was trying to finish in sub 1 hr)

Named after Crossfit superstar and athelete Eva T, the wod is a brand new addition to the Crossfit black box. Eva, who recently said in an interview that she's a fan of Helen because its her mother’s name, shows us just how much she loves her mom in this grueling workout. Congrats to Eva for her namesake wod and a big high 5 to all of those who survived yesterday's workout!

8:45am
4.5oz Ground beef w/ marinara sauce
1 Blood orange
6 Almonds
2 Tbls. cream in Coffee
=3 blocks+1 fat block

1:15pm
4.5oz Ground beef w/ marinara sauce
1.5 cups raw Spinach w/ dressing
1 Tangerine
.25 cups Blueberries
.75 Tbls. peanut butter
=3 blocks+1 fat block

Catch up time

2008-02-21T08:39:00.000-08:00

Now that I have fully recovered from my cold, it's back to the training floor for me.

This week at Crossfit Oakland:
Tuesday:
1) Bench Press 5x5 - 82 lbs
2) 3 sets of max # of Dead Hang pull-ups: 4/3/3

Yesterday:
1) Hang Squat Clean 3x4- Loads= 45/55/65/75
2) Complete as many rounds in 20 min of:
8 pull-ups, 8 push-ups, 4 Handstand push-ups, 8 Kettlebell swings (16kg)
= 5 + 8 pull-ups

I did this second workout with Max Lewin at Berkeley Ironworks. A huge thanks to Max for letting me join in on the fun!

Today's Wod:

4 rounds of:

Run 400meters followed by 50 Squats
=12:57

8:15am
1 Chicken Sausage
1.5 cups Berries w/ 1/3 cup Almond meal & Flaxseed meal (mixed)
3 Almonds
= 3 Zone blocks+1 fat block

Ode to Journals

2008-02-18T13:49:00.000-08:00

I began recording my Crossfit workouts a little over a year ago and have recently discovered a new appreciation for my journal. Aside from being a useful tool for tracking daily wods, it is a constant reminder of the progress I've made and speaks to the power of Crossfit. The crinkled, scribbled on pages of my journal are a testament of my hard work, dedication and love of the sport.

As I flip through the pages of my coveted journal, memories of wods that made me scream and cuss or left me floored in a pool of sweat and tears spring up and I can't help but shake my head and smile. There is a strong sense of accomplishment that I get each time I open up journal and read old entries. These pages provide me with the confidence and motivation to challenge myself further and strive for elite fitness.

Today's Workout @ Crossfit Oakland: Front Squat 1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1
65-75-85-95-105-115-115-110-110-100
(loads in Red represent failed attempts)

2008-02-13T08:59:00.000-08:00

I visted the Farmer's Market last weekend and was delighted to see an array of this season's fruits and vegetables. Even during this chilly time of the year, loyal nature continues to provide us with a bountiful supply of her delicious treasures.

To find a Farmer's Market near you visit: http://www.localharvest.org/

WINTER GREENS
Artichokes

Cauliflower
Celery Root

WINTER FRUIT

Click on any of these to learn how to store and prepare them.

Chipper Fun!

2008-02-12T08:52:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a “Rest Day” on the National Crossfit Site, however me and a few other loco Crossfitter that missed Friday’s wod did the following:
For time:

25 Walking lunge steps

20 Pull-ups

50 Box jumps, 20 inch box

20 Double-unders

25 Ring dips (partials)

20 Knees to elbows

30 Kettlebell swings, (45#)

30 Sit-ups

20 Hang squat cleans, (20 pound dumbbells)

25 Back extensions

30 Wall ball shots, 14 pound ball

3 Rope climb ascents
My time: 32:24
(Wieght in Red are my modifications)

I felt pretty good until I got to the ring dips. I still haven’t mastered the full range dip but I did as many as I could as deep as possible. This really slowed me down considering I could only do one at a time. The KB swings were pretty brutal too, it was the most weight I have every swung. And the 3 rope climbs at the end were down right mean! Great to be back in the gym again!

Meals Today:
5:45am
.5 Cliffbar Builder Bar
=1.5 Blocks

7:45am
3oz Extra lean Ground Beef
1 Orange
.75 TBSP Almond Butter
=2 Blocks+1 Block Fat

2008-02-11T10:57:00.000-08:00

“Health and sickness are largely externalizations of our dominant mental and a spiritual state…A normal healthy mind reflects itself in the body, and conversely, an abnormal mental state expresses its corresponding condition in some physical condition.”
The Science of Mind-Ernest Holmes

Holmes’ words on the Mind/Body connection really resonate with me right now. With the passing of my grandmother last week, my depleted spiritual and emotional state lead to some physical ramifications. My body felt the effects almost immediately, leaving me exhausted and causing me to sleep 10, 11 even 12 hours/night. Fatigue, coupled with flu-like symptoms has really crippled any effort to “get buff”.

Last week, I took a few days off from x-fitting and simply focused on resting and listening to my body. As you can see, I couldn’t even muster up the energy to do any blogging.
On a brighter note, I woke up today feeling somewhat normal again. This is good considering I agreed to workout with Audra later this evening.

Mission: Get Buff

2008-02-04T11:22:00.000-08:00

As I mentioned on the previous post, I will begin to make a serious effort to decrease my bodyfat% from 12% to 10%. This seems to be a much healthier body composition and a realistic goal for myself.

According to the bodyfat test results, I need to lose 2.5lbs of fat to reach my ideal bodyfat%. However, my approach requires me to gain 2-3lbs of mucsle, giving me the same desired results.

My Gameplan:

1. Crossfit 2 days/1 day Rippetoe-style strength training

2. Eat 9 block/day + 1 fat block

3. Limit myself to 1 cheat meal/week

[presently @ 1 cheat day/week]

4. Get plenty of sleep

Meals today:

9:30am

3 Eggs

3 cups Mushrooms

2 cups Chard

9 olives

Coffee w/ cream (extra fat)

=3 Blocks+ 1 fat

1:30pm

4 Eggwhites (hard boiled)

.5 Cucumber

1 cup Celery & chives

mustard, salt, pepper

.5 Orange

9 cashews

=2 Blocks + 1 fat

I Got Tanked!

2008-02-01T10:33:00.000-08:00

I know what you’re all thinking, but this isn’t that kind of blog.

Anyway, yesterday was the long awaited and highly anticipated body fat test! Although a bit scary at first, as the test requires you forcefully exhale while you are completely submerged in water (highly counter intuitive), 10 minutes later I was merrily on my way with 4 pages of very useful information on my body composition.

After thoroughly reading and re-reading the results in further detail, I learned that my body is composed of 88% lean body mass and 12% body fat, putting me between the 90%- 95% percentile rating of “Healthy Range” for my age group.

It was delightfully surprised, to say the least! I had some idea of what my body fat percentage may be prior to taking this test, but the number was a bit higher than 12%. This also proves that the zone diet is working! Before I started zoning 7 months ago, I was 12lbs heavier and my body composition was far from being in this healthy range! Thank you Barry Sears!

The 3rd page of the results calculates exactly how many pounds of fat I would have to loose to reach my target fat %. For example, if I want to lower my body fat % to 10% I would need to loose 2.5lbs of fat, or if I want to get it down to 6% I would need to loose 7.1lbs of fat, presuming I don’t loose any muscle in the process. At this point, I am not as concerned about loosing any more weight as I am about gaining more muscle mass, which is a more desirable method of lower my body fat %. Okay, that’s enough about that.

Workout yesterday @ Crossfit Oakland:
3 Rounds of:
185# Deadlifts, 15 Reps. (scaled down to 120#)
15 Handstand Push-ups (to target)
15 Pull-ups
15 Thrusters 65#
=Time: 31.17

This was one of the hardest workouts I’ve done! You know it’s hard when the thrusters are a relief! My handstand push-ups were not as good as they could have been. I think my arms are still recovering from Cindy and Grace. Great workout, thanks to Candace for coaching me through it, it was brutal.

2008-01-30T11:55:00.000-08:00

Get back into the zone...

Yesterday’s Meals:

8:30am
3oz Chicken
1 grapefruit
.5 cup grapes
3Tbs. Avocado
=3 Blocks

12:30pm
2.5oz Chicken
1 cucumber sliced
1 yellow bell pepper
.5 cup salsa
2.5Tbs Avocado
=2.5 Blocks

4:00pm
1.5oz ground Buffalo
.5 cup salsa
1Tbs Avocado
=1 Block

7:30pm
1/3 chocolate Cliffbar’s Builder Bar
1 Chicken sausage
.5 Apple
2 cups Broccoli & Cauliflower
1/4Tbs peanut butter
=2.5 Blocks

9 Total Zone Blocks

Yesterday’s workout @ Crossfit Oakland: “Grace”
(I was all but graceful while doing this wod yesterday)

30 Clean & Jerks for time (Rx’d weight is 95lbs for women): 11:36 @ 80lbs
The last time I did this wod was 9/21/07 (4 months ago). I was 2.5 minutes faster 4 months ago, but it was with 65lbs versus 80 which explains the longer time. My hope is to soon be able to do this workout at the prescribed women’s weight, so I don’t mind taking a slower time in exchange.

Monday Confessional

2008-01-28T19:38:00.000-08:00

I had a college buddy visiting this weekend and went way outta the zone. In fact, I couldn't even see the zone from where I was.
I've been dreading this post because I feel super guilty not to mention gross, about all the damage I did in just a few days. However, I think its only fair that I share.
***Please don't try this at home folks.
Alright so here it goes...

Friday: 2 pints of IPA

Saturday: 2 glasses of wine, 1 glass of Champagne, 3 Gin Martinis, 1 shot of JD, 1 shot of Patron, Chocolate cake, cheese pizza and unknown number of Oreo cookies.

Today: 2 glasses of wine, a giant hamburger w/ cheese & bacon and finally a large piece of Taramisu.

Tomorrow I promise to break this self destructive cycle and find my way back into the zone.

Workout today @ Crossfit Oakland- "Cindy"
How many rounds in 20min of:
5 pull-ups
10 push-ups
15 squats
=10 rounds + 2 push-ups
The push-ups were brutal and really slowed me down, or perhaps it was all the booze.

What is a carbohydrate, really?

2008-01-25T12:33:00.000-08:00

A recent conversion with fellow crossfitter/zoner has prompted this post on carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates are 40% of each zone meal, the other 60% are comprised of equal portions of fat and protein, thus making carbohydrates a key component to get right as it makes up most of your meals.

Personally, I believe that carbohydrates are the preeminent factor in determining your success with the Zone. The carbohydrates you choose to eat will make or break your diet. Remember guys, you can still eat potato chips and be in the zone!

For those of you who have not yet read up on the Zone or have no interest in reading Sear's books, you can still be a successful zoner as long as you remember that not all carbs are created equal. Not only is it important, but it is essential to select carbohydrates with a low glycemic index while still maintaining zone portions. Glycemic Index is the rate at which carbohydrates are converted into glucose. It is based on a 0-100 rating system with 100 being the high end. Carbs with a high GI convert to glucose quickly; spiking blood sugar levels causing an immediate insulin response. The downfall is that an overproduction of insulin will signal your body to STORE fat! In other words, high GI carbs=big gut.

What is a carbohydrate? Fruit, vegetables, starch, grains, legumes and dairy (also has protein). (Most fruits and vegetables have a low Glycemic Index)

What is protein? Anything that once had a face.

What is fat? Nuts, avocado, oils and butter

Check out the zone block chart to the left for a detailed list and the block prescription for each.

Here is an interesting article published by the Harvard school of Public Health on GI: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/carbohydrates.html

Meals today:

9am

3 hard boiled eggs

1 Grapefruit

1/2 an Apple

.5 Tbs. peanut butter

=3 Blocks

Clean-riffic!

2008-01-23T12:27:00.000-08:00

As usual, I use the Crossfit rest day, the day following the third day of a workout cycle, to work on my lifts. On most days, I strictly follow Mark Rippetoe's 5x5 scheme that he so thoroughly lays out in Starting Strength.

Yesterday was a particularly good day, in that I set a new PR in power cleans: 3/4 my bodyweight for 3 reps! Better yet, this fulfills one of the goals on the CrossFit skills Assessment guide for "Intermediate Athlete/ Level II". I'm super stoked!

Yesterday's workout/ Crossfit Oakland:

5x5 Back squat @ 105lbs. & 3x5 Power Cleans @ 86lbs. (PR)

Today's Meals:

8:30am

2oz Salmon

.5 cup Berry Bliss

4 Tbs fresh salsa (tomato, onion, cilantro)

=2 zone blocks

12:30pm

2oz Roast Beef

.5 Grapefruit

1.5 cup steamed Broccoli

.5 cup Blackberries

2 Tbs. Avocado

=2 zone blocks

Monday

2008-01-22T09:09:00.000-08:00

I've decided I need to cook at home more.
Here are meals for yesterday:

8:15am
Bellwether Farm's Sheep Yogurt (my new favorite thing)
1oz sliced Turkey breast
1 cup Organic Blackberries
=2 zone blocks

11:30am
2oz sliced Turkey breast
Frozen berries w/ Almond meal & Flaxseed meal
=2 zone blocks

3:00pm
1/3 Clifbar's Builder Bar (protein bar)
2 hard boiled eggs
1 apple
2 macadamia nuts
=3 zone blocks

8:30pm
2oz Prather Ranch Lamb (photo above)
1/2 cup Pineapple
1/4 cup Onion, bell pepper, broccoli, Shitake mushrooms
2 Tbs. Avocado
=2 zone blocks

Total Blocks for Monday= 9

Workout/Crossfit Oakland : How many rounds in 20 min?
5 Handstand push-ups (to target)
10 L Pull-ups (kipping)
15 walking lunges
=4 rounds + 5 Handstand push-ups
This was the first time I had done the L pull-ups with a kip, previously I did jumping pull-ups with a L negative. Also, I feel like I got a lot more range of motion on my push-ups than ever before.

A great catch!

2008-01-21T09:10:00.000-08:00

For those of you who haven't joined the Zone cult yet...what the heck are you waiting for?!!!!

At the zone support group dinner held at Crossfit Oakland this weekend, there was a discussion on fish oil and the benefits of supplementing zone meals with this golden elixir.

Here is a list of 7 positive effects fish oil has on your body:
(Taken from EzineArticles)

1. Less Pain and Inflammation. Omega 3 fatty acids, particularly EPA, have a very positive effect on your inflammatory response. Through several mechanisms, they regulate your body's inflammation cycle, which prevents and relieves painful conditions like arthritis, prostatitis, cystitis and anything else ending in "itis."

2. Cardiovascular Health. Omega 3 fatty acids have also been proven to work wonders for your heart and the miles and miles of arteries and veins that make up your cardiovascular system. They help to lower cholesterol, tryglicerides, LDLs and blood pressure, while at the same time increasing good HDL cholesterol. This adds years to your life expectancy.

3. Protection from Stroke and Heart Attack. When plaque builds up on arterial walls and then breaks loose, it causes what's known as a thrombosis, which is a fancy way of saying clot. If a clot gets stuck in the brain, it causes a stroke and when it plugs an artery, it causes a heart attack. Research shows omega 3 fatty acids break up clots before they can cause any damage.

4. Better Brain Function and Higher Intelligence. Pregnant and nursing mothers can have a great impact on the intelligence and happiness of their babies by supplementing with fish oil. For adults, omega 3 improves memory, recall, reasoning and focus.

5. Less Depression and Psychosis. Psychiatry department researchers at the University of Sheffield, along with many other research studies, found that omega 3 fish oil supplements "alleviate" the symptoms of depression, bipolar and psychosis (Journal of Affective Disorder Vol. 48(2-3);149-55).

6. Lower Incidence of Childhood Disorders.

7. Reduction of Breast, Colon and Prostate Cancer. They stop the alteration from a normal healthy cell to a cancerous mass, inhibiting unwanted cellular growth and causing apoptosis, or cellular death, of cancer cells.

Aside from eating in the Zone, fish oil supplements puts you a giant step closer to reaching optimal health! So, chug away my friends!

Enough's enough!

2008-01-17T12:47:00.000-08:00

So after having taken L-Glutamine supplements for about a month now, I think I'm gonna call it quits. The truth is those damn pills make me jolt to the toilet every half an hour, especially before a work out. To my surprise, the research on the side effects of L-Glutamine claimed to be the opposite of what I was experiences. In fact, L-Glutamine was recommended for use in suppressing diarrhea! Crazy!

Although I will continue taking Arginine supplements and fish oil regularly, I am confident that a well balanced diet should produce sufficient levels of glutamine to support muscle recovery/growth without taking additional supplements. Just another reason for me to stick to my coveted 10 zone blocks/day.

Yesterday's Meals:

1) 7:45am

3oz Turkey breast

1 Grapefruit

1 kiwi

3 tbs. Avocado

2) 12:45pm

2.5oz Birria

2 Red bellpeppers

1/2 Salsa

2.5 tbs. Avocado

2 tbs. Hommus

3) 5:30pm

2 Turkey meatballs

1oz Swiss Cheese

1 cup Marinara sauce

1/2 an Apple

4) 9:30pm

Sm. Ceaser Salad

1/3 Builder's bar

Total Zone blocks consumed =10

Day 4

2008-01-15T07:46:00.000-08:00

Okay so I let it myself cheat a little over the holidays, big deal. Alright maybe a lot, but lemme tell you, I enjoyed every minute of it!

Its time to get serious now, for real. I have some major fitness gains to achieve this year and I'm not gonna let a little holiday wieght slow me down. Now that I've finally gotten all of that partying, eating, drinking and celebrating out of my system I'm going super strict zone for as long as I can stand it.

I know firsthand that whatever I put in my body will have a direct and immediate effect on my performance at the gym. Today marks my fourth day of strict zone eating

Yesterday's Meals:

8:00am

1 Chicken Sausage (gluten-free)

1 cup Organic Blueberries

Coffee w/cream (fat source)

=2 Blocks

12:00pm

3oz Turkey Breast

1 Cucumber (sliced)

1 Apple

3 tbs. Organic Avocado

=3 Blocks

4:00pm

2oz Turkey Breast

2 Tangerines

6 Almonds

=2 Blocks

7:30pm

4.5oz Ground Lamb

Lrg. Green Salad

1 Organic Pear

=3 Blocks

Total Blocks for Monday 1/14=10

Yesterday's Workout: Crossfit Oakland:

Shoulder Press 3 sets of 5 (60#) only got 4 each set :(

Power Cleans 2 sets of 3 (84#)

Deadhang Pullups 3x3